Avatar: Book of Forgotten Past
by UnbalancedNinja
Summary: A demon from Aang's forgotten past haunts him 6 years after the end of the Fire War. The claims made throw Aang into a psychological battle with himself, with others, and with something beyond life itself. All that he knows may be stripped away forever.
1. Prologue

**A/N: **I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender. I've put a lot of my own characters into this fic, though. Enjoy! Also, I changed something from the original TV show. Bending was not possible in the Spirit World but in my fiction, I decided that it was. I think I explained it and made it work pretty well, though! Besides, it really worked with what I wanted to do.

* * *

**Avatar: The Last Airbender**

**The Book of Forgotten Past**

**Prologue**

"Katara! Watch out!" Aang shouted as an explosion set off behind her, crashing her through a glass window. Katara's body rolled across the Fire Nation Capitol's street until she was able to stand herself back up. It had taken them weeks to find this place and when they did, the resistance proved to be much stronger than they had originally thought. This was one of the last few main strongholds kept by those who remained loyal to Ozai. It didn't matter if Prince Zuko was now the Fire Lord, they only answered to the Phoenix King. Even in jail and with the loss of his Bending, Ozai still held much influence over his Nation and some little failure son wouldn't take that away from him, no matter how 'pretty' Zuko made his coronation speech. They were all fools if they thought a few tiny words would automatically change all the hearts of his followers, he worked all his life building these strong bonds and only death would separate them.

Ozai was later moved into a more secure location, away from any type of harmful contact, but there were still some who wanted him to rise back into power. The dream of Fire Nation dominance had completely intoxicated them, leaving them in a power hungry drunken stupor. Katara winced as she pulled out the glass shards in her arms and found her balance, shaking off the blast. If she could take these guys out, they'd be one less threat to the people and their terrorism against Zuko's "Rebirth" program, bringing the Fire Nation back to their original heritage. These men had even murdered hundreds of their own citizens inside the city's walls in attempts to quell the widespread change. It was time for them to be stopped, in any way possible as far as Katara was concerned, but Aang would not allow the killing of a single individual; no matter how just it may have been.

If these evil men harmed Aang in any way, no matter _how_ small, Katara would pay it back in the very least one-hundred fold; nobody messed with her love. She pulled the water from the air and Bended it into a giant sphere, thrusting it into the fortress' wall standing right in front of her. The explosion knocked those behind the wall off their feet, and Katara came running in standing back to back with Aang.

"Aang, you okay?"  
"Katara, are _you_ okay?"  
"Yeah, I'm fine."  
"Same here."  
"Are you ready, Aang? Let's do this."

Katara uncapped her drinking goard and the two Bended the water into many tentacle arms, thrashing their enemies about. Aang Bended the stone earth underneath of them into sharp spikes, destroying the unmanned towers surrounding the small complex. The soldiers around them groaned in pain as Katara's water arms forced them down into the dirt. She released them, letting the water fall and smiled at Aang. He took the cue and encased all of Ozai's faithful troops into hardened stone cages, making sure not even one would escape. Aang looked at Katara and frowned after all their enemies were secure.

"Aang?"  
"Katara, I thought this war was over..." he said solemnly.  
"The war _is_ over, Aang." she said consoling him, touching his shoulder.  
"Then how come it doesn't feel like it? I don't like hurting people."  
"But it needs to be done, they are hurting people too."  
"No one should ever get hurt, Katara. You know how many times I've lost my temper. I could actually... kill someone."

"Aang, that will never happen. You're too kind for that, that's what I love about you."  
"Too kind? Katara, I..."  
Katara hugged her love and brought him close into herself. "This isn't like you, Aang. You worry too much. It'll all be over soon. I promise."  
"I hope so, babe. I just don't want this anymore."


	2. Demon in my House

**Chapter One: Demon in my House**

"_What are you doing, Aang?"  
I'm going to kill you, I have to._  
"_No! You wouldn't think about it! What's gotten into you?"  
Nothing. I know exactly what I'm doing._  
"_You can't possibly mean that! Do you... do you even know who I am?"  
No. I no longer acknowledge your existence. Not after what you've done._  
"_I didn't do anything! Listen to me! Please!"  
You never heard the plea of those you murdered. This has to be done._  
"_Aang!"_

"Aang!"  
"Aah! What? What?" Aang nervously said, waking up and spastically shifting his eyes all over the bedroom. "Calm down! You were thrashing about in the bed! What's going on? You were sweating, making loud noises, and everything!"  
"Oh. Sorry Katara, I had a bad dream," he said, still looking away from his wife.  
"Aang, look at me. What's wrong?"  
"Nothing. It was just a nightmare," he told her in a very soft-spoken voice.  
"Dearest, stop lying to me, okay? I've known you for six years now, you can't hide a thing from me."

"I don't know what's going on, Katara. That wasn't me. Not me at all."  
Katara looked at him and propped an eyebrow. "What wasn't?"  
"I don't know..."  
Katara sighed and rested Aang's head on her lap. "It's okay, Aang. Whatever it was, it was just a dream, okay?"  
Aang smiled and hugged Katara. "Yes, just a dream. Nothing to fear."

* * *

Aang couldn't remember the rest of his dream from the previous night. Or, probably closer to the truth, he didn't _want_ to remember. It was as if his brain had blocked out the rest of that evening, comforting his thoughts. "I'm going to kill you, I have to." Aang whispered to himself, recalling the words from his dream. He could remember that clearly, _too_ clearly. After he fell asleep in the arms of his lovely wife, he couldn't remember a thing; it was just black. He looked down and noticed that he was still in the bed and Katara was gone. What time was it? How long had he been there? He took a breath and studied the surroundings inside their Northern Water Tribe home. They had moved here after the long years of cleansing the remaining troubles in the Fire Nation and similiar issues. There was still much to be done to fully reconnect the Nations together in peace, but after hearing the news that Pakku and Kanna decided to settle here along with their father, Katara and Sokka wanted to come along.

The Northern Tribe also had its fair share of post-war troubles and it was a blessing that the Avatar had rejoined them, giving a helping hand. Ever since Pakku allowed Katara to Waterbend, which had gone against traditional custom, their government slowly began to change. That idea was so revolutionary and since she was the grandchild of his beloved Kanna, nobody dared to refuse her the training. Her role in the war along with the Avatar had also helped shape the new government system, allowing them to realize that the women's talents didn't have to be just for healing. Their culture, ever since the Fire War, had been to let only the men go into battle, they couldn't lose their women. The law forbidding women to learn Waterbending was at first, for their protection but over time, it had become just the natural order of things. This change took a while to show itself, but now the Northern Tribe had adopted some of the Southern's culture thanks to Kanna's and Katara's hard work. Sokka was enrolled into the warrior's academy and over time, he gained enough knowledge and experience to start training the younger recruits. It was his dream to fight alongside his father and now it was made possible.

Aang got himself out of bed dressed himself in the traditional Northern Tribe fashion, grabbing his glider before he left. He walked outside onto the city streets and slowly made his across the paths. _I'm going to kill you, I have to. _Those words spoke into his mind again and that stopped him dead in his tracks, paralyzed from the unnatural shock. He could hear himself say the words, but could never picture himself actually speaking them. His own voice was blaring inside his own head telling him to do something that went against his own beliefs. It was painful, scary, unknown. The words, "Kill you" rang repeatedly inside his mind, layering on top of one another to the point where they became so heavy that he was forced to his knee, shouldering the invisible weight. His eyes dilated and shook fiercely, moving in rhythm to his pounding headache. "What... What is this?" he asked into the empty air, holding his head. "I don't know what's––"

"Aang! Help!" shouted a close voice, releasing him from his unhealthy thoughts.  
"Whaddia doin', Aang? Help!" the voice cried out again. Aang unfurled his glider and boosted himself up into the air, trying to locate the sound of the trouble. His was racing, what exactly was going on? Was that dream some type of eerie sign, a partial message? It was just all confusing to say the very least. When he located the problem, he expressed a face of short anger. "Sokka!"  
"Aang! Come on, man! I'm in trouble here!" Sokka yelled as Appa bucked and flailed him about, swarming through the air. Sokka tried to tame the beast, but it took all that he had to just keep his bare-handed clutch on the saddle. Appa was unusually wild, acting like some castrophe had just taken place.  
"Sokka! What did you do?" Aang asked as he landed himself onto Appa, stroking the Bison's mane and soothing him. Aang lowered Appa back onto the ground and Sokka jumped off as quickly as he could, tripping his foot over the saddle and landing him face-first into the ice capped street. He scrambled back up and moved away from Appa.

"What did **I** do? Don't ask me! You slept in really late and Katara went to practice her Bending without you, helping teach Pakku's students. I decided to feed Appa since he was looking really depressed and waiting for you to come. These houses here can't hold him, so I had to walk over to his private little den. It's not too far, I don't mind, but..."  
"Err, yeah?" Aang replied, tapping his foot.  
"Well, I got his food ready and he was fine at first, no problem! But the second I mentioned your name, this crazy thing started freaking out like he had just seen a ghost! I tried to calm him down, but all that did was wind me all the way up there." Sokka pointed towards the sky and Aang noticed an irritated expression on his friend's face.  
"Everything okay, buddy? Appa hardly ever acts like that," Sokka asked, a little concerned.

Aang, completely innocent to Sokka's question, began to pet Appa like nothing ever happened.  
"Aang? Everything alright?" Sokka repeated, now more annoyed than worried.  
"Yeah, of course it is. Nothing's wrong at all. Everything is perfectly fine."

"_Are you sure about that, Aang?"_

"Oh, okay. Cool. Well, you're gonna feed him from now on like you normally do, pal. I don't care how late or early it is anymore. I ain't dealing with that again! At least Momo doesn't throw me around. All he ever does is steal my food so I never have to feed the little thief."  
"Haha, okay. Nobody asked you too anyways, Sokka. You never change, do you?"  
"You'd think that he would at this stage in his life!" Katara yelled coming into view with her eye twitching.

Sokka placed his hand to the back of his head and gave a slight laugh. "Hey Sis."  
"Hey girl," Aang said with a pleasing smile.  
"Hey you. You up now? How you feeling?" she asked him with concern in her eyes.  
Aang hated the look of those eyes, he hated making anybody suffer, especially her. He hugged her and gently whispered into her ear, "Don't worry. I have everything under control. I know exactly what I'm doing."  
Katara smiled and gave him a quick kiss on the mouth. "I'm glad."

The sunlight hit Aang's face and he squinted his eyes. "What time is it, anyway?"  
"It's past noon. It's so unlike you to sleep in so late."  
"Yeah, I know. Sokka over there gave me the lecture just a few minutes ago."

"And don't forget it!" Sokka yelled, pointing his finger directly at Aang.  
"Oh come on, Aang. Since when was Sokka ever right about anything?" Katara asked with a wide grin.  
"Aw, that isn't nice Katara. You know he's been right in a few areas. Like when he learned how to tie his shoe last week."

"Hey!" Sokka protested, "It didn't take me _that_ long to figure that out!"  
Katara laughed, "Yeah, only the first seven years of your life."  
"You guys... Seriously. Stop treating me like a little kid. I'm not that spastic boy you knew six years ago. You'd be scared too if Appa tried to kill you, Katara."  
"Appa?" Katara asked raising an eyebrow, "Aang? Just what exactly is he talking about? Appa sick?"  
"No, Appa's fine. I just had a bad dream and must have spooked him somehow. That's all. Everything's fine."

"_Yeah, sure it is, Aang."_

"Bad dream? The one you had last night? How could Appa even know about that?"  
"I don't know. Maybe Sokka did something stupid," Aang shot Sokka an angry stare that said, "Sokka! Why'd you even tell her about that?"  
Sokka, feeling a little uneasy, lunged forward and put his arms around the both of them. "Oooookay then! Seeing how the three of us have just averted a major life or death situation, who's up for some lunch?"  
"Lunch? I haven't even had breakfast yet!" Aang said, a little disappointed that he missed the first meal.  
"That's not my fault, handsome. Should have gone to bed when I told you," Katara said, nudging him.

"Haha! Yeah, Aang. And besides, who cares? Food is food!"  
"To you, maybe. I don't eat meat, remember?"  
"Oh, that's right. Well, whatever. I'm sure Appa can share some of his hay with you. If you're lucky, he may even toss you around a few times. That should be lots of fun, huh?"  
"Sokka! That's not funny!" Katara threatened, "Keep that up Sokka, and I'm going to kill you!" Katara shook her fist at him, driving her point home.

_I'm going to kill you, I have to._

"W-what? No! I can't! Leave me alone!"  
"What are you doing, Aang? I didn't really mean it. And besides, that isn't too big a deal, right?" Sokka said, unknowing of Aang's current situation.

"_What are you doing, Aang? Do you even know who I am?"_

Aang clutched his head and pushed his two friends away. "No! I don't know who you are! Get away from me!"  
Katara and Sokka looked at each other in confusion and worry. "Sokka! What did you do!"  
"I don't know! I didn't do anything! Don't blame this on me!"

"_I didn't do anything! Please listen to me, Aang. I don't want to die."_

"I don't know you!" Aang screamed, already sweating.  
Katara sheltered him and wrapped her arms around his neck.

"_Aang? You don't... You don't even remember me?"_

"Just shut up! Will you just leave me alone?" Aang pleaded, not paying attention to where his words traveled. Katara held onto him tighter, trying to figure out what to say and do. "Aang! What's going on?"

_I'm going to kill you, I have to._  
"_You will really do that, Aang? I thought that we were..."_

"No! We aren't ANYTHING! Stay away from me, get out of here! GET OUT OF MY HEAD!"  
"Aang! What's going on!" Katara repeated, having a sharp pain tugging at her heart.

"_Have you forgotten about me, already? Dear Aang, you're making me very, very sad. Please don't make me cry..."_

"I don't know you! I don't know you! I don't know you! How come you're in my memories?"

_That's an awful thing to say, Aang. It makes me want to cry. How could you say such a thing?"_

"Aang? What are you saying?" Katara asked, holding him tight up against her chest.  
"I... I don't know you! Stay away from me!" he screamed, running away from Katara.  
"A-Aang?" Katara said, almost ready to cry.

"_See, Aang? You're making me cry. How could you forget? I'm your..."_

"I'm your wife, Aang! Snap out of it!" Katara Bended the water from her goard and splashed it onto Aang with a huge wave. The ice-cold water jolted Aang back into reality and he looked at his surroundings in confusion. "Katara? What was I doing?"  
"Nothing, Aang. Nothing at all," she answered him with a tear in her eye, holding him tight against herself. "Everything's fine, Aang. Nothing to fear."

* * *

Ursa traveled down the long palace hallways, taking in all of the memories. Everything had changed since she was last here, and everything was still changing; but this time for the better. It seemed like a lifetime ago when she was here, maybe it even was. The past years in her life were filled with terror, unknown tomorrows, and merciless grief. All because of that one day...

* * *

"You will suffer the same pain as Iroh. The loss of your firstborn son!" Fire Lord Azulon screamed, shaking his fist behind the raging fire of his throne.  
"My Lord, my Father, I did not wish to disrespect you," Ozai claimed, bowing his head to the floor.  
"Then you will silence yourself and do what I command without question! Your son, Prince Zuko, will be killed tonight. By your own greedy hands for indicting my firstborn against me! Leave now before you lose both your children!"  
Ozai took another bow and left his father's presence without uttering a single word. Azula, who had hidden herself behind the curtains through the whole conversation, made a silent giggle and ran towards Zuko's bedroom.

She opened his door without hesitation to find her brother sleeping on his bed. She walked over towards him and poked him under the elbow. After a few jabs, Zuko finally awoke and looked at his sister in a state of confusion. "A-Azula?"  
"Daddy's going to kill you, Zuzu," she told him, crossing her arms, giving him an eye of dominance.  
"What? What did you just say, Azula?" Zuko asked, now rubbing his eyes and sounding a bit concerned.  
Azula sat near him on his bed and crossed her legs. "Didn't you hear me? You're going to die tonight, Zuzu. Daddy doesn't love you anymore."

"You lie!" Zuko shouted, jumping out of bed. "Father would never do that! Shut up, Azula!"  
"He wouldn't? What do you know, brother? I heard him," she said, smiling like a cold devil.  
"Azula! No! You're lying!" Zuko pouted.  
"What's going on here?" Ursa asked as she walked into their commotion.  
"Mom! Azula said that Father's going to kill me!" Zuko said, trying his hardest to hold back a few tears.

"Azula! Why on earth would you say something like that to Zuko? We need to have a talk young lady, your behavior has been unbearable these past few weeks!" Ursa forcefully took Azula's hand and walked her out of the room. Scared, Zuko cried himself back to sleep.  
Hours later, Zuko was woken up again but only this time by his mother. "Zuko, my love, everything that I have ever done for you was always to ensure your safety. Please never forget this, I love you baby."  
"Wha? Ookaay... Whatever you say Mom..." Zuko said, drifting off, going back to sleep.

Ursa kissed his forehead, shed a tear, and closed his door on her way out. She returned into her bedroom, only to find her husband absent. Was it time already? She reached into her dress and pulled out a concealed ceremonial dagger. She turned her head towards the mirror and cut her hair; she would either be banished or killed for what she was going to do next. She placed the knife back into her sleeves and ran out of her bedroom.

Ursa sprinted as fast as she could down the halls with her tears spraying into the air behind her, trying to make it in time. She stopped and took many deep breaths, there she was, at the doors of Fire Lord Azulon's bedroom. _Zuko, if I kill him, Ozai will be Fire Lord and you will live... _She looked around, searching for any patrols and unlocked his door with the master key. "I... I have to do this." She pulled out her dagger once again and stepped quietly to Azulon's pillow. _Just one quick, clean slice, Ursa. Come on, this is for Zuko. Ozai does not have to kill him... No, not if you..._

The dagger's blade glistened amongst the candlelight in the room and its shine irritated Azulon's eyes. He slowly opened them and saw Ursa standing above him. "Lady Ursa? What do you want? What gives you the right to just come in here during my rest?"

"I want... I want..." Ursa said, hands trembling, "I want to keep my baby alive!" She thrusted her arm and Azulon grabbed her wrist, her blade being centimeters away from his throat. "You wish to kill me?" Ursa was crying at this point, but she knew that she couldn't turn back now. This _had_ to be done. She smacked his hand away and plunged the dagger into his throat, only to have him ignite a blast into her face at the last possible second. She screamed in horrible agony from the burn, and Azulon lay lifeless with the dagger still impaled into his throat, blood running down his neck. Ursa's screams brought attention to nearby guards and they came rushing in to gauge the situation. "What? What the..."

"Murderer! Kill her! Kill the traitor!" they cried.  
Ursa finally quenched the flame and saw herself surrounded by numerous soliders, ready to take her life for what she had just done. She threw her dagger on the floor, knowing that she didn't need to defend herself anymore. "Do as you wish," she told them, her mouth still chittering from her burning pain.  
"I intend to, Ursa," the voice of her husband echoed into the room.  
"Ozai!"

"Be quiet, traitor!" he scolded her, "You have killed the Fire Lord! And now..." he walked up to her and squeezed tight onto her throat. "I will do far worse to you than death, dear wife. I will honor your last wish of letting Zuko live and I will accept the vacant throne, but you... You will no longer remain in this kingdom. I banish you, I never want to see you again and neither will your children." Ozai turned to the soliders in the room. "There. Break all her limbs and toss her outside the gates. I don't want to look at this trash any longer."

* * *

She had nearly died back then, it may have even been better for her at that time to have been killed. The following years were tormenting, making her feeling broken and lonely. Forgotten. Unloved. She almost lost her sanity on a number of occasions and even attempted suicide more than once. Her mind was unraveling and there was nothing she could do, nothing at all. She often forgot where she even was, every morning when she woke up she would always be somewhere else, forced to carry the burdens of slavery and their market travels. The burn on her face had mostly healed, but there was still a visible scar across it, letting those all around her think of her as some lowly criminal. Those years had been years of anguish, leaving her desolate and desparate, but she had always tried to keep hold on that small glimmer of hope. Maybe the war would be over, maybe she could return home. Maybe... maybe she would be able to see her children.

She remembered when the news spread throughout all the lands that the 100 year war had finally come to an end and that her son, Zuko, was now the Fire Lord. It took two years after the fact for her to even receive that knowledge because either her captors or masters wouldn't allow their slaves any glimpse of the outside world. Her only salvation was when they finally returned back to the Fire Nation and she was sold to some unknown buyer. She was used to it all by this point, all the abuse, all the labor, all the... unpleasant memories. They blindfolded her as usual, the typical scare-dominate tactic and brought her into the room.

"Just leave her here," the unseen voice spoke.  
"Of course, my Lord," the slave trader said and took his leave.  
"Hold on," the man said, stopping the trader.  
"Yes? You need another?"  
"No. I want you to suffer. The same fate as my Mother!"

_Mother?_

The man walked slowly towards Ursa and lifted her blindfold. The look in her eyes were filled with shock and she couldn't help but cry.  
"Mother, I searched forever for you. Welcome home."  
The two hugged each other and looked at one another's scars. That part of the memory was somber, knowing that her son had also been hurt, but it was all fine now. She was back together with him.  
Ursa shed a few tears from all her memories in the past and brought herself back into the present, there was still one more person she had to meet; she had been away from her for years even after her return. Ursa sighed deeply and unlocked the cell door. There, sitting in front of her, was a young woman bound and gagged, chained to the floor.

"Hello, Azula."


	3. A Hardened Spirit

**Chapter Two: A Hardened Spirit**

"Dear Mom and Dad,

Hello, this is Toph and I know that you guys have been very worried about me.  
Please do not fret the Fire Nation Hawk that had delivered this message to you, Sokka  
bought him for the purpose of sending mail, and we chose to send it to you.  
I am having my friend, Katara write this to you since I obviously can't. I wish  
you guys would stop trying to find me and acting like I have been kidnapped. I ran  
away, I wasn't captured or anything close to such a stupid idea. You guys never  
understood me and after that fight in the arena, I thought you all would finally  
realize something. But hey, you've proven me wrong many times before and I got  
sick of it. The Avatar, Aang, needed me to help him train Earthbending, and I gladly  
accepted. There is something you guys need to know: I am not the helpless little girl  
that you think I am! I don't know how many times I've tried to express that feeling to you.  
I can 'see' with my Earthbending, I feel the vibrations around me and I can visualize to a  
certain extent the features and details around me. In fact, ever since I ran away as a small child,  
I learned that from the Badgermoles and haven't had much of a problem seeing as long as I was  
on stone and earth. I've discovered how to Metalbend now, and that makes life a lot easier. I  
am doing my best to keep myself calm and remain civilized in this letter, but there is no way  
that I can come back home anytime soon. To tell the truth, I am quite annoyed with everyone  
there and really hate it. But I also really love you guys, despite all of the idiotic things you forced me into.  
I have chosen to leave high society and I don't wish to return until I am ready and  
until you can finally understand me. I am the best Earthbender in the world, and you  
can not worry about me any longer. I hated how you guys never let me do anything  
on my own and since I could never get my point across, I sometimes even acted the part.  
I can take care of my own self and don't need anybody's help. Don't respond, you won't be  
able to find me, but again, please don't worry about me at all. I will return whenever I feel  
like it, and not anytime before. If you send anymore people after me, I'll just bend them into metal  
cages like I did the last two. The harder you search for me and act all dumb, the longer I will  
stay away. I miss you, but I'm also happy that I'm away from you. Once you guys  
realize this, I will return. Until then, survive this war.  
With much love and frustration,

-Toph."

That was the letter that Toph sent six years ago and ever since then, everything had been completely different for her. After the war ended, she stayed with Aang and company for another year before finally returning home to Gaoling. During that year, Sokka and Suki had broken up and although Toph was sad for Sokka, she was happy in a way. She was jealous of Suki, with her being around the same age and well... having matured more so than her. It meant that he was available, but a ladies man like him would have probably been bombarded with thousands of girls before she could ever get close. It was frustrating in a way because even though she could tell what his body looked like through Earthsight, she could never make out faces. What did he look like, anyways? And for that matter, how did she look to him? He sounded cute alright, but she just didn't know. While she was with the team, it was a strange attraction to begin with. He treated her like another sister or a best friend, she could never tell which, but she adored him all the same. All of his annoyances irked her like everybody else, but inside she would always laugh at them. They shared tons of fun times together and on certain occasions, the two of them would even talk alone enjoying their friendship. Sokka was a complete stooge and an idiot at times, but when it came right down to it, he was a serious man and determined to protect his friends. That meteorite bracelet he had given her or as he stupidly called it, 'space-earth', was one of her treasured keepsakes. She had wished that she could have given him something else other than broken bones and bruises over the time she had known him. True, it was fun beating him to a pulp and most of the time he deserved it, but what else could she do? She never had a real friend before, how else was she supposed to treat one? It never made any sense to her, which in turn, earned him a few more punches.

Toph smiled at her memories of his beatings as she literally stared blindly at her ceiling, still in her bed. She then frowned and and threw her pillow across the room remembering the last meeting they had five years ago.

* * *

"Umm, Toph? You're hurting my arm," Sokka said as he tried to pry her off.  
"Oh shut up. I'll do whatever I want," she told him smiling and clinging even tighter.  
"Toph, seriously. You need to let go. I'm losing circulation here."  
"Aww, you're just a wuss," she said, releasing her clutch.

Toph and Sokka walked the streets of Gaoling and Toph could notice all of the vibrations and images around her, reminding her of why she left this place. Shortly after the war, Sokka, Katara, and Aang traveled across the Nations trying to restore peace to the lands. Toph stayed with them helping out for about a year, but she began to worry about her family and wanted to return. She was definitely hesitant about it at first, scared that her parents would treat her like they always had, but she was ready to return and she hoped that they were ready to see her. Toph had requested that Sokka guide her home as Aang and Katara continued their work; those two acted as revolutionaries anyways and Sokka had moved back to the Northern Tribe with his father to teach the young warriors and spend time with Gran-Gran and Pakku. Aang and Katara would eventually join him, but they all had to go their separate ways.

Toph knew that she wouldn't be able to see Sokka much or even not at all, so she asked him to guide her home as their last parting. Well, forced would have been the proper word seeing how she never gave Sokka the choice to walk her back. She was only 13 and shouldn't be thinking these things but she wanted to. She just didn't know how to explain them.  
"Sokka? After this, what will happen?" she asked him, stopping in the middle of the street.  
"What do you mean?" Sokka said as he scratched his head.  
"Well... It's not like anything's gonna change the moment I walk through that door anyways."  
"Who says? I'm sure they'd be happy to see you, Toph! I would!"  
"You would?" _Sokka, you jerk! Why'd you go and say that for? Now I'm..._

"Toph? What's wrong? How come you're so red in the face?"  
Toph turned her head away, having the color spread from his question. What was she feeling? How come everything was so complex? It just sucked so much but why did she still like it? She punched Sokka in the arm and he yelped in pain.  
"Toph! What's your problem? All I asked was if you were okay! What's the deal?" he lectured, rubbing his arm.  
"Stop asking me stupid questions. I'm fine. I can take care of myself." Without even realizing it, Toph took his arm and rested her head on top of it. Sokka felt very uncomfortable and pushed her off.  
"What are you doing!" he shouted.  
"Me? What are YOU doing? You shouldn't push a lady! You stupid... Meathead!"  
"Toph, you're acting very strange. You aren't usually this distant."  
"Don't tell me how I am or how I should act! I'm just fine! I'm normal!" she yelled at him, red in the face with anger.

"Toph, you were never normal," Sokka said bluntly, unaware of the pain of his words.  
"Ennnnaaahhh!" Toph screamed and Bended the earth under their feet, throwing Sokka on his back.  
"Toph! What are you doing? What is going on with you?"  
"I didn't do anything, Sokka. You just lost your balance. Jerk."

Sokka had no idea what was going on with her, but he could always tell when a friend was hurt. "Toph? I'm sorry that I pushed you, you just surprised me. Are you feeling okay? You can tell me, remember all of those late nights we talked trying to wind down from the all of the craziness during the day?"  
"Yeah..." _Oh crap, what's he want me to say? I'm feeling this way because..._  
"Hey Sokka, I have a question for you," she said looking up into the sky, not wanting to see anything.  
"Okay?"  
"It's about you Sokka, so..."  
"Go ahead, Toph."  
"What do you look like? You sound cute alright, but I don't know. If this is the last time we talk to each other, I want to know."

Sokka didn't really know why she asked him that question and it felt a bit awkward, but he placed his hand on her shoulder and laughed. "Yeah, I'd like to think so. Suki thought I was and I can't seem to keep the girls away."_  
Yeah, except for me, Sokka. You've managed to keep me away from you..._ "Oh, right. Suki," Toph said lowering her head.  
"You okay, Toph? You sounded disappointed."  
"Disappointed?" _I'm jealous you moron! "_Nah, but I have another one for you."  
"Errr, okay but we really need to get you back soon Toph."  
"What? Tryin' to ditch me already? I'm not letting you." She grabbed his arm again and squeezed it tight. "Sokka, what do I look like? I mean, how do you see me? And don't you dare lie. I'll send you to the moon if you do!"

"Well, Yue was pretty hot."  
"SOKKA! Just answer the question, Meathead!"  
"That's a bit tough, Toph," he said smiling at his 'clever' play on words.  
Toph raised her eyebrow. "Really?"  
"Well, you're..." Sokka began to blush and Toph smiled from feeling his vibrations and emotions.  
"You're different."

"I'm what?" Toph said, misunderstanding Sokka's confusion.  
"No! Not like that! It's more complicated. When you first joined us, I thought that I had to protect you. You know, being blind and all."  
"Sokka..." Toph breathed with annoyance and making a fist.  
"Toph, just let me finish. Over time I found out that you were fine on your own and I didn't have to worry anymore."  
"Aww, you worried about me?" Toph teased, but also blushing herself.  
"Kind of? I just always wanted to look out for you."  
"So why is it complicated?"  
"Because you're Toph. You're my friend, and I'm not quite getting what you're trying to say exactly."

"Well I thought that we could..."  
"Could what?"  
"You know... Kiss goodbye?" _You blew it, Toph. You totally blew it!_  
"Whoa! No way! I can't do that!" Sokka exclaimed, pulling away from her.  
"Oh, I didn't know that I looked that horrible..." Toph said downtrodden.  
"No! That's not it at all!"  
"Then what is it? I don't understand! Any of this!"  
"Well you..."

"WHAT? Don't have the goods? Too short? I'm not Suki? What is it?"  
Sokka closed his eyes and calmed his nerves. "Toph, stop beating yourself up. You're only allowed to do that to me, alright? You have a pretty face, don't let anyone tell you otherwise. You'll be very cute when you grow up."  
"When? But you don't..."  
Sokka gave Toph a quick hug which stopped her words. "Say, let's go back, okay? I bet your family's really worried about you."  
"Idiot. You're trying to change the subject," she said smiling at him, "but you're right. I've been gone long enough."

Toph and Sokka walked the streets of Gaoling and to Toph's surprise, he took her hand and they walked together with their fingers overlapping one another. Sokka had no idea why he even took her hand or even why Toph told him what she did. He couldn't comprehend her liking him in the way she was saying and it just felt so weird to him. He never discarded the idea of being together, she was a 'rocking' girl, but he didn't know. A few months ago he had broken up with Suki and still thought about her, but was also trying to move on. It wasn't like he could go out with Toph anyways; her family probably hated him for 'kidnapping' their only daughter and he was leaving the next day to go back to the Northern Water Tribe. If there was any reason at all that he didn't want to date her, it would have been that. He didn't want her feeling sad because of the distance, especially since Aang and Katara wouldn't be returning to the Tribe for another few years and he wouldn't have Appa to ride whenever he needed.

They finally reached the front gates of the Bei Fong household and Toph let go of Sokka's hand.  
"We're here, aren't we?" she asked very depressed.  
"Yeah, you're home Toph. Everything will be different now, I'm sure of it."  
"Yeah, and I'll be cooped up in there forever again, not having any friends. Friends like you, Sokka."  
"I'll miss you too, Toph. Won't miss all of those bruises you'll give me, though."  
"Oh you won't, huh? Maybe I should hit you a few more times then," she grinned.

The two stood silent for a brief while until Toph spoke again.  
"You know, this could be our last goodbye, right?"  
"Huh? Toph, stop being so melodramatic."  
"Well, could you do something for me please? Just for me? Just in case we never see each other again?"  
"Toph, you're making this hard for me too you know."  
"Yeah? Well shut it, I don't care right now. If this is our last goodbye I want you to..." _Sokka, I think that I love you._

"Toph, you'll be fine."  
"I would like you to... to..." _Say it, stupid! Come on! _"Give me a kiss goodbye. It doesn't have to be big or anything! Just... a small, tiny one would be okay..." What did she just say? That was foolish, she wasn't acting like herself. What was this feeling and why was it so good and bad at the same time?  
Sokka wiped the sweat off of his forehead and gave Toph a very awkward smile; good thing she couldn't see his face. "Toph, do you really mean that?"  
Toph's face beamed with joy. "Yes!"  
"Fine, Toph. I'll give you a small kiss on the cheek to say goodbye."

_On the cheek? You stupid idiot! How else can I say it? I don't know anything! _"Oh... okay."  
Sokka gave her a quick peck on the cheek and patted her head. "Toph, you should really get going."  
"Wait."  
"Toph? What else do you want?" Sokka asked hanging his head in frustration.  
Toph touched her bracelet and brought her hand up to one of her earrings. She felt for the pin and took the earring off.  
"Sokka, since you gave me this a little over a year ago, I want to finally give you something as well." She placed the earring in her hand and reached it out to him, waiting for him to catch the hint and take it.

"Toph, are you sure? Isn't this like a royal decoration or something?"  
"Royal? Screw that, Sokka. You've given me a very rare stone, so the least I can give you is my regal earring. I don't even know what it looks like, so take it. I don't want it. Take it and leave, Sokka. Just... get outta here." _There you go, Toph. Just tell him to go away. What's that gonna do?_

"Thank you! I'll never lose it, okay Toph? I'll keep it with me everyday."  
Toph blushed. "Sokka, please. Just get out of here."  
Sokka gave her a hug and waved goodbye. For the next minute or so, Toph had remained where she stood, hand still on her cheek. She snapped herself back into focus and walked to the front doors. _Get yourself together, girl. It's not like it would've worked out anyways. _She took in a very deep breath and exhaled, followed by putting her hands on the large doors in front of her. She pounded on the frame and before she knew it, someone from the inside opened the door.

* * *

Toph took in all of those memories as she sat on her bed, Bending her treasured bracelet. Since that day, everything had been great. Well, _almost_ great. At first, everything was the same from when she had left and her parents were furious with her. It didn't take long, however, for them to finally see her the way she wanted them to and for the first time in her existence, she was made known to the public as their daughter. She was very happy about this, she no longer had to hide herself or any of her abilities. It felt so good, so amazing, so deserved. She _did_ deserve it too. After all she had done, they should have crowned her Queen at least. Not long after that, she overtook her previous Master Yu's Earthbending school and adopted it as her own. She was known and feared by everyone in her class as, "Toph, the greatest Earthbender in the world and the Avatar's Master." However, that shortly ended after she had been so fed-up with all of the morons and rookies attending her classes. She knew that only her and Aang were able to feel the earth's vibrations and only she could Bend metal, so her training school never saw much of a life. Aside from that small setback in her life, everything else had been going well for her, much better than she ever thought would happen. She was treated like a normal kid, just like everybody else, exactly what she always wanted. It was good. Wonderful. All of this, but she knew that she was still missing something in her life. Or rather, someone in her life. She Bended the bracelet back onto her wrist and made herself ready for the day.

"Sokka, am I grown-up enough for you yet?" _Because I think that I still love you..._


	4. Familiar Faces

**Chapter Three: Familiar Faces**

"Who's there?" a crazed woman wrapped in chains spoke.  
"It's me, Azula. Your mother," Ursa said wanting to hug her daughter after all this time, but couldn't find the strength to walk any closer.  
"W-who? Who are you?" Azula said, swaying back and forth.  
Ursa flagged down one of the tower guards that were passing by and asked him a question. "How long has she been like this?"

"Before you even came back, Lady. She's been getting steadily worse since then. We've done many things to try to help her as were Fire Lord Zuko's orders, but something has gone terribly wrong inside her head. Her defeat six years ago might have caused some traumatic damage to her psyche and mind. We've done our best but either it hasn't worked or she refused the treatment, becoming extremely violent."  
"I see," Ursa responded, not knowing what else to say.

Since her apparent traumatic event, Azula had been confined into solitary treatment for years, with any outside visitors forbidden. Their presence held a strong possibility that Azula would have gone completely psychotic and there was no telling how much damage that would cause her or anyone else. Her days in the lonely room were filled with unwanted misery and unknown problems. Her recovery cycle was the most unusual thing anyone had even seen; she would remain calm and silent for months and afterwards she'd be violent and screaming, always trying to break free. She was degenerating into a wild beast without a functional brain, and nobody knew how to control her. Her physical appearance was also deteriorating and her hair looked like a Medusa's, snake-like strands hanging in every direction.

"Azula, you look horrible, darling. You used to be so beautiful and your hair so captivating." Ursa ran her fingers through Azula's hair and the nervous woman pulled away the best she could while chained down.  
"My, my hair?"  
"Azula, how have you been?" As if it wasn't obvious enough already.  
"Who are you, again? Why am I here?" Azula asked, having her thoughts spread all across her brain.  
"You don't remember, sweetie?"  
"Remember? Remember what? I didn't say anything."

Ursa started to cry and hugged her daughter. "Oh baby, I've missed you so much. What has happened to you?" Azula became frightened and thrashed around. "Why are you touching me? Get off me! You're trying to kill me!" Ursa didn't let go of her child in hopes that she'd somehow remember who her mother was. Azula kept screaming, "You're trying to kill me! Get off! Get off!" When Azula bit her mother on the arm, trying to get away from the stranger, Ursa let go and looked at her with sadness in her eyes. "Azula, I hate seeing you like this. You don't remember me? You don't remember anything?"

"Hmm? Did you just come in? You want to play with me? It's fun out here in the courtyard."  
Ursa weeped some more and felt a sharp pain inside her stomach. "Yes, I've come to play with you, Azula."  
"Oh, what's your name? You're pretty."  
"My name? It's Ursa," she told her, trying to smile.  
"Ursa? That's a lovely name. Mine's Azula. Your name reminds me of something, do I know you?"

Ursa livened up and touched Azula's shoulder. "I'm your mother, Azula."  
"Mother? What's that? What do you mean? Who are you? I've never heard of that word before."  
Her response silenced Ursa and she couldn't find any words at all to speak.  
"Mommy? Where's Daddy? I want to show him something."  
That question hurt Ursa, bringing back the painful memories of when she last saw him. But did this mean...?  
"How about you show me instead, baby?"  
"Show you what? Are you trying to take something away from me?"

"No, I would never do that."  
"Liar! You're trying to steal something! Daddy! Daddy! Help!" Azula screeched, her echoes traveling across the halls. Azula calmed down and looked at her visitor with water in her eyes. "Hello. Have you been here before? It's a wonderful house."  
Ursa fell to her knees, she couldn't take much more of the pain. "It is, huh?"  
"No! Who told you that? That's a lie! I hate it here! Everybody's so mean! I don't think they like me at all! Who are you? Are you one of them as well? Stay away from me! I don't want to feel any more pain!"  
"Azula..."

"You **are** one of them! You even know my name! Get out! I don't want to die! You're cruel!"  
"Darling, I..."  
"GO!" Azula cried out, her salty tears now running into her mouth.

_Ursa...? That name sounds so familiar..._

Ursa closed her eyes and painfully stood up, walking out of the confinement without saying another word. Her daughter, her beloved Azula, had been this way for so long and it was horrifying just looking at her. Ursa felt so bad and guilty that she hadn't been there for her over the years and halfway convinced herself that Azula's condition was somehow in part her fault; how could she even do something like that to her daughter? She ran the halls with tears streaming down her face and flying into the air like she had so many years ago and when she found her way to her bed, she fell on top of it and weeped in anguish.

* * *

"Everything's fine, Aang. Nothing to fear." Those were the words Katara had spoken to him a week ago after his intense breakdown. He wanted to believe that, but it was just so odd he'd have a dream like that, much less even picture himself in that position. That same dream had been constantly replaying inside his sleep every night since then and even though he did his best to hide his worry, he knew that Katara had to know that something was up. "You know how many times I've lost my temper. I could actually... kill someone," he said to himself, repeating what he had told Katara long ago.

"Aang, that will never happen. You're too kind for that, that's what I love about you." He smiled remembering her response to his concern but then tightened his fist angry that the dream hadn't left him. It was the same. Over, and over, and over. With every dream, Aang looked more harsh and cold as he spoke the words. Constantly. Like they were no big deal at all. Who could have even said something like, "I'm going to kill you, I have to?" That wasn't him at all, not even in the least bit; he could never kill anyone. He refused to, no matter how much everyone else thought it was deserved. He had spent the entire day with Appa, just seeking refuge alone and it was very relaxing, all except for those words.

"Please, Aang! Don't kill me!" That voice pleaded into his ears again. Why wouldn't it leave him alone?  
"Like I would! Get off my back! I've never killed anything! Anybody!"  
"Aang, what's going on?" Katara asked as she walked in, petting Appa.  
"Would you believe me if I told you nothing?" Aang said trying to feign a happy face.  
"You know me better than that, Aang. You're not getting away from me this time."  
"It's that dream again, Kat."

"What? From a week ago? You're still worried about that?"  
"No, from last night. The same dream. Every night."  
"It's been bugging you this much? Well what was it? You never told me."  
"I'm not sure, babe. It's something I'd rather not talk about."  
"Aang, you try to take on everything by yourself, even when you know you can't handle it. Aang, this time, don't do anything at all. I'll take care of it for you. What's wrong?"  
"I killed somebody, Katara. I think that I really killed somebody."  
"Aang, that's stupid. You've never killed anything."

"_I'm going to kill you, I have to."_

"But that dream felt so real, something's totally wrong here," he said, putting his arm around her.  
"Aang, what's gotten into you? Didn't I tell you that everything was fine? You haven't ran from your emotions this bad for a long time, I don't like it."

"_I'm going to kill you."_

Katara kissed Aang on the mouth and ran her fingers down his right arm. "See? Isn't that better? Stop being so depressing, okay? You're acting just like Sokka when he doesn't have any meat." Katara said, touching him on the nose with a laugh.  
"Heh, I think Sokka is actually worse." Aang felt relieved that he had the chance to talk to Katara and finally unload all of the weight that had been piling on top of him for the past week. It was awfully confusing and so alien to him that it had been draining the life out of him for those last seven days. He held Katara in his arms and touched his forehead with hers. "Thank you. I'm..."

"_I'm going to kill you, Katara."_

"Shut up!" Aang screamed, removing himself from Katara's hold.  
"Aang, you're scaring me baby. Not this again, please."

"_Aang? Don't you remember who I am?"_

"No! No, I don't!"  
"Aang, who are you talking to? There's nobody here," Katara said, tensing up her body.

"_You've known about me for a long time. How could you have possibly forgotten about me? It makes me sad, Aang. After all we've been through and even after what you've done?"_

"What I've done?" Aang spoke aloud, having his headache return.

"_You've forgotten that as well? How could you? You... you... killed me! How could anyone forget that? My death had gone against ALL your principles! Weren't you taught that all life was sacred, Aang? How could you?"_

"What? Liar!" Aang shouted, boring his fingernails into the skin of his head, "I never killed anyone! How could I? I... I..."

"_I am your greatest mistake."_

The toxic presence left the air around Aang and he lowered his hands, noticing small traces of blood on the fingernails. Katara stared for a few seconds in silent shock at the claw marks Aang had put into his head. She gently placed her hands on the wounds and her touch jolted Aang, making him twitch.  
"Shh. Calm down, love. It's only me." Katara used some of her water and healed the small cuts. The feeling was so soothing for Aang, that Katara kept her hands on him and massaged his temple very slowly. When she was done, Aang grabbed her hands and cupped them into his own.  
"Hey, Kat? I'm sorry. I have no idea what's going on with me."

Appa roared expressing his worry for his companion. Aang stroked Appa's fur and burried his head into him. "It's okay, buddy. I'm just fine." Appa made a sound of satisfaction and closed his eyes.  
"Really, Aang? Is that true? You said that the last time. I love you, I don't want you feeling this way."  
"I don't know **what** I'm feeling, Katara."  
"Well, I'll always stick with you no matter what; and whether you like it or not."  
"And I'll stick with you too, Katara. It took me 100 years to find you, and I never want to lose you. I'm so deeply in love with you."  
"Oh, Aang. I know that you are. That goes for me, too. I'm..." Aang watched Katara's lips mouth the words she wanted to say, but he heard another voice inside his head transposing itself onto hers.

"_I'm your greatest mistake."_


	5. Fright

**Chapter Four: Fright**

Katara was worried about her Aang after what he had put her through the previous night. He promised her that everything was straight and she had nothing to fear, but something inside her was screaming out the antithesis of his claim. Aang was hiding something and she knew it, she just didn't know what that 'something' was. "I think that I really killed somebody, Kat," she spoke to herself as she walked alone down towards where Kanna was.

"Oh, Aang. Shut up. You could never do such a thing," Katara said, sighing in frustration. "Aang, honestly. What am I going to do with you? Something's going on with you and can't seem to listen to me telling you that everything's alright. Stop lying to me, I know you far better than anyone else. I didn't think you'd still be this reserved after we've been married since last year. What's your problem?"

"Katara, who are you speaking to?" Kanna asked with a wide smile.  
"Gran-Gran!" Katara said with joy. "Where's Dad?"  
"Your father? He's at the academy training Sokka as usual. You didn't walk all the way down here to just ask me that, did you dear?"  
"No, I just needed someone to talk to. My thoughts are all messed up."  
"Oh, precious. What's the matter?" Kanna asked her, giving a quick hug.

"It's Aang. He's been acting a little... strange," Katara said hanging her head.  
"Ah, marital problems already?"  
"No! Nothing like that! He's great! In every possible way, Gran-Gran."  
"Then what's the problem, dear?"  
"I... I'm not sure?" Katara said moving her eyes into the sky.  
"Talk to me, honey. Tell me what's wrong." Kanna put her arm around Katara and guided her into her home.

Katara then preceded to tell her Gran-Gran about everything that had happened in the past week and when she was finished, Kanna wiped the tear away from her granddaughter's eye. "I haven't a clue what's wrong with him, Gran-Gran. It's so annoying and painful. I know it's not his fault, and something's so unusual about him, but I don't know what it is! What do I do?"  
"You can't do anything, Katara."  
"I know! That's what I'm saying! I don't know what to do!" Katara squealed.  
"No, sweetie. I mean that you **can't** do anything."  
"What? Just what are you saying, Gran-Gran?"

"All you can do is be there to comfort him, you can't make him do anything. That isn't love. True, you should guide him where he should go, but it is not your place to force anything upon him. It isn't anyone's."  
"So are you saying that I just sit back and watch him go through pain every night? Something's wrong with him! How can I even accept that?" Katara's eyes welled up with water and her shaking hands were clasped together, trying to contain herself.  
"You really love him, don't you?"  
"Yes. Very much," Katara answered, now quieting down just a little.  
"Then stay with him and believe in him. He'll get through this as long as you're there holding his hand. You can only do so much, Katara. Keep your own self strong and steady and he'll become fortified along with you."

Kanna hugged her granddaughter again and Katara hugged her back. "You're pretty smart, Gran-Gran," Katara said with closed eyes.  
"Oh? Well I ought to be! I didn't get to be this old in one day! I _should_ know something by now!" Kanna said as she winked.  
"Heh, yeah. And I still have lots to learn."

After Katara left, the burden on her heart felt so much lighter, but inside her head everything remained exactly the same. It was such a mystery to her and even Aang didn't understand what was happening. He never had such a dream before and he had never acted like this before; even with Ozai. Aang had felt deeply troubled over that battle and the possibility of having to actually kill someone; even if he was his enemy. He was able to get past that dilemma by sealing Ozai's Bending for the rest of his life, but Katara could tell that whatever was bugging Aang was also totally exhausting him. It was like he had actually killed someone, their death being played out in front of his eyes every day since that first dream. Katara couldn't take it much longer; she had tried to ignore the previous nights of when Aang yelled and screamed in his sleep, sweating all over the bed with his drastic movements and even let him tell her about his dream like she knew nothing of his misery, but now it was all too much.

"Aang, you don't like hurting people so STOP BREAKING MY HEART!" she screamed into the air, causing all those around her to stop and stare. "What are you looking at?" she countered their gazes, "Mind your own business! You don't know what it's like! Just back off!" Katara looked around her and realized that she had just lost her temper and snapped harshly at everyone. She backed up a few paces with her hands over her mouth before doing anything else and then turned around and ran.

She got as far as the main city gates and bent over, trying to catch her breath. After panting and wheezing many times, she sat herself down in an attempt to gather her thoughts. "Take it easy, Katara. You're getting yourself way too worked up about this," she told herself exhaling a deep breath. So many things raced inside her mind all trying to find a convergence point and flow together. Every memory spawned another and every clear and focused face birthed hundreds of faded others. Katara did her deep breathing exercises that she had learned within the Healing Huts and tried to focus in on all of the turmoil going on inside of her, hoping to bring it into view. Instead of helping things, it only seemed to have made them worse as all her thoughts clouded and collided into each other.

"Ugh, it's no use. I can't seem to figure out anything, Aang. I hope you're okay. I'll give everything for you." Katara stood up and held her gaze at the stars. "I've been here this long already, huh?" She asked herself, having been unaware of the time she had spent up until now. "Well, I better get going. He's probably waiting for me."  
"_Katara..." _she heard Aang's voice inside her head speak.  
"Aang?"  
"_I'm going to kill you, Katara. I have to."_  
"What? What did you just say?" Katara asked, falling down to her knees once again.

* * *

"What do you mean 'what?' Get it together, Sokka! I said that you're not giving it your all!" Hakoda scolded his son as they trained inside the academy's walls.  
"Yes I am, Dad! We've been at it all day long! I'm getting tired! Gimme a break already!"  
"Sokka, you wanted to be on the force, didn't you? You can't give up right now! The Water Tribe prides itself on their warriors! I left Bato in charge of the Southern Tribe when I was asked to come here so I could help build these people back up after the war! They are counting on you, too, Sokka."  
"I've been 'priding myself' for hours! This is pathetic! Come on, Dad! My arms are about to fall off!"

Hakoda looked at his son and gave a slight chuckle. "We have been working pretty hard, huh?"  
"You think? Honestly, Dad. You're worse than Toph when she trained Aang."  
"Ha, oh really? That's funny. It's been a while since you've last seen her, right?"

Sokka shifted his eyes to his sword hilt at Hakoda's question. Since the loss of his meteor sword from the war, he used the knowledge and skills he learned to forge a second. He decided to create the sword out of jade, a remarkably strong material. Since its beautiful color reminded him of how Toph always wore green, he added onto the hilt Toph's earring she had given him, finishing the project. Every time he looked at his weapon, her face and the memory of their last meeting would always return. He kept his promise by taking her earring everywhere he went and still wondered what she had meant during the last time they spoke.

"Yeah, it's been a little over five years."  
Hakoda noticed that Sokka lowered his head. "You miss her, son?"  
Sokka jolted his head, trying to figure out an answer to the question.  
"Sokka, it's a yes or no question. Do you miss your friend?"

* * *

Aang looked over to Katara who was sleeping peacefully on her side in their bed. He had been choked out of his sleep again a few hours prior by that horrible nightmare and everything within him plead for an answer. He gently stroked Katara's long brown hair and hoped that she didn't know what was going on with him. It seemed very selfish at first, but he wanted to keep it all to himself; it was too scary for him to even talk about it. If it had been only a random dream, it would have gone away by now; he was positive, but ever since the first occurrence, they had been getting progressively worse and the Aang in his dream looked more and more menacing. After the third night having the same dream, he tried to enter the Spirit World to figure out his situation, but the connection was blocked and he couldn't pass through. That alone made him worry even more, which only added to his anxiety. He knew that he had never killed anyone before, so having this recurring dream frightened him beyond belief. He wasn't used to being like this, either. Sure, he had similiar problems in the past and worries over his life, but he always bounced back and attacked them head-on. This was totally different for him, like he was powerless to even blink his eyes or look away.

Despite his best efforts, all he could do was suffer through the dreams and watch as he killed a shadowed figure with no name or face. The same scene would replay over and over inside the dream and after the last loop was made, the Aang that he watched over would always direct his eyes towards him, and leave him gasping for air as he woke up from the murderous intentions behind them. That man that he saw looked like him and sounded like him, but wasn't him. Far from it. He ran his fingers through Katara's hair again and she made a pleasurable sound still deep in her slumber. "I wish I knew what was going on, babe," he said in a voice softer than a whisper. "I don't want you to be worried about me, I hate making you cry."  
"A-Aang..." Katara mumbled in her sleep with a wide joyful grin. Aang rubbed his head a few times before recalling one of his favorite memories and quite possibly the best thing that would ever happen to him; the night of his wedding.

* * *

"Aang, I've been waiting for this for a long time," Katara whispered into his ear, holding his chest.  
"I know, Katara. I can't believe it's happening."  
"Sure you can, it's your dream come true." Katara moved her hand up onto Aang's cheek and pressed against it. "I know it's my dream."

Aang rested his hand on hers and before he knew it, he was engaged in a passionate kiss, unlike all the others he had before. He was married to her now, and everything in his life seemed to feel extravagant, wonderful, intimate. _They_ were intimate, and after waiting for a hundred years for his true love, there she was entangled in his arms.  
"Aang, you know..." Katara said, moving some of her hair back, "After tonight, I can share anything with you. I'm not holding anything back, Aang. You've taken my heart, and now you can have the rest of me; all of me."  
"Katara, I fell in love with you the first day I met you. I don't want to hide anything from you either, I don't have to. I want you to have all of me, to know me like nobody else can. I love you so much. And after tonight, nothing else matters just as long as you're by my side."

* * *

Aang tapped his fingers together a few clicks from this memory and made a few short breaths. "Katara, hey, Katara," He said as he shook her.  
"Wha?" Katara said, still dazed in her sleep. "Aang? What is it?"  
"Katara, I need to talk to you."


	6. Desperation

**Chapter Five: Desperation**

"Restrain her! She's losing it!" cried out one of the prison guards. Azula had finally broken free of one of her shackles, using the strength of a madman in order to accomplish the goal. All she wanted was to just escape, but even with one arm free, her mind was still too confused on what to do next. She furiously tried to undo her second arm, pulling and biting the chain. It was hard to know if she even remembered how to Firebend or if she ever could; most of her didn't care about that anyways, she just needed to be free. A few weeks after Ursa had visited her, Azula's incoherent beastial mind forced itself to remember her name and face. The memory was in there, she knew it, but she couldn't determine how the memory even started. Azula had tried time and again to escape her holding cell over the long drawn-out years she had been confined, but the seemingly umovable restraints always held her back.

This time was different, however. The drive to search for that unknown memory and the contridiction of her not even wanting it, forced her body into unnatural strength and power. The years hadn't been so kind to her, either. The primal rage she was displaying now had been slowly built up over time and that one visit was the final brick to be layed to finish her insane architecture. The guards kept pulling her head back every time she tried to crunch the shackles and she then sunk her fangs into their skin, wanting them to leave her alone. She wasn't even speaking words at this point; the only sounds coming from her throat were of desperation and intense agony.

Fire Lord Zuko was contacted at her sudden change, Azula had already began to act violent towards his men. Once Azula saw the face of her brother, her eyes became even more wide with fear and used her free right arm to snatch a dagger off one of the guards. Her grip on the handle was as a dead man's final clutch, almost impossible to pry without some kind of tool. She swiped at the air with her stolen blade and scratched the armor of a guard standing close to her. He backed away instinctively from her attack and drew his sword as a counter-measure. The tip pointed into the middle of Azula's eyes and the shock temporarily froze her in place. All the men around her grabbed her free arm and pulled it behind her back, trying to immobilize her and cease her fierce meltdown. She screamed and coughed from the assualt, seesawing from their hold while still having her left arm and legs bound. She felt a burning fire well up in her chest and not knowing what it was frightened her even more and harshened her violence. The dagger in her hand warded off some of the people touching her and she thrusted her arm forward as far as it could go in order to keep them away. She then started to slash at her metal chain, reasoning that if she could free her second arm everything would be alright.

Azula realized after her quick, multiple stabs and cuts that the dagger was far too weak to free her from her bondage. She stopped after that 'revelation,' and looked at all those who stood before her. The stare in her eyes even gave the most experienced soldiers cold shivers and they too, remained still in their places. Her eyes shifted back and forth from theirs, her dagger, and the one thing that kept her arm locked away for all this time. Within an instant, the dagger fell on top of her wrist and she raised her hand up again to deliver the second blow; thinking that if she could sacrifice her worthless hand, she'd be free for all eternity despite the shackles still on her feet and legs. Zuko noticed this a fraction of a second before anyone else did and rushed in to stop his sister's unbelievable act of self-mutilation. He seized her dagger-equipped hand with all his might and forced it to the stoned and cracked floor.

"Azula! Let go! What are you thinking? Release it!"

Azula screamed like a banshee, the piercing sound echoing all throughout the halls, but Zuko only tightened his grasp onto her hand. He heated the weapon's handle with a very weak Firebending technique, trying not to harm his sister, but she would not unhand her blade that she had procured. "Azula..." Zuko heated the weapon to a greater temperature and his sister finally threw the dagger across her cell, screeching in pain from the small burn like a little child. She looked at Zuko with hate in her eyes for taking away her only chance for escape. She loathed this man, whomever he was. How dare he take away that prison key? Just a few more clicks and turns she would have had unlocked that disgusting brace. The nailed down chain was becoming weaker with every attempt to break free, and she noticed its failing strength. Just like the last time, she would rip out that chain, regardless of the damage it may cause to her body. She grunted and made hundreds of unintelligable sounds as she pulled and before anyone could stop her, her left arm was finally freed. She smiled and looked at both her bleeding forearms from where the restraints used to be. She tried to dash out of the wretched place, but her face fell to the floor; having her bottom half still bound.

That burning feeling inside of her was growing hotter, but now she was curious instead of scared. What was this feeling? Did it mean that she was going to die? Or did it mean that she had some latent power inside of her she never knew? All those questions didn't matter once the surrounding guards captured both her arms and forced them up against the wall. "Azula, please. Stop this. You have no idea what you are doing." Zuko told her, with very little hope that his words would actually get through.

"U-Ur-ss-aah," Azula said, still having the memory of the visitation stuck in her head.  
"Azula? What did you just say?" Zuko asked her in disbelief.  
"Stop talking to me!" she yelled. Her palms glew a bright red and then blue. They were trembling beyond control, making her entire body shake.  
"Azula?"  
"I said stop talking to me!" Two small flames were created in the middle of her open palms and Zuko shouted for everyone to retreat. Azula was at first worried and confused on why the strange fire was being formed out of her hands, but she decided to use the weird phenomena and make her escape.

The two in front of her, still holding her down to the wall, had no time to run away when she shot the fire directly into their faces. The burns happened so fast, that they didn't even have time to scream as they fell down dead, parts of their skulls showing through the burnt flesh. Her hands were still engulfed in blue flame and she burned the chains binding her ankles and knees. The shackles were still on, but they were detached from their links and now she could move freely; after six years of confinement. Like second-nature, she combatted against the soldiers in her cell and killed them in blazing fires, the stench of decaying flesh already filling the room. The only one left was Zuko and the two stared each other down for a few eternal seconds. Something inside her brain 'clicked' after her Firebending discovery and the heated flames in her hands melted her long years of confusion and insanity.

"Hello, Zuzu," Azula responded after the short silence with a devilish smirk.  
"You finally remember, Azula?" he asked her, pulling out both his swords.  
"What are you doing, Zuko? You wouldn't hurt your dear sister, would you?"  
"Azula, you need help."  
"Hey, Zuko," Azula said disregarding his last statement, "Where's mother? She's here, right?" Her demonic grin stretched the farthest it could go across her face and cracked her bleeding wrists.  
"Stay away from her, Azula. I don't want you trying to kill her like Ozai did."  
"Ozai? Ha. Why shouldn't I? She only loved you, Zuzu. I want... I want to show her just how much I care as well."  
"Azula! Leave her alone!"  
"Make me, brother."

Before the siblings could attack each other, Azula's eyes rolled into the back of her head and she passed out, exhausted from the buried memories rising to the surface and the loss of blood from the constant flow coming out of both her wrists and arms. Zuko caught her before she fell and gently lowered her onto the floor. Reinforcements rushed into the area and were appalled at the grisly sight in front of them.

"My Lord! Did she kill all of these men?"  
"Yes..."  
"The traitor! She deserves to die!" shouted the angry men.  
"Who makes the rules in this kingdom? Her brain is still under some stress and I will not allow you to end her life," he looked around the room and all the burnt bodies, "She doesn't belong in here, either. Locking her up was a bad idea even though we couldn't do anything else. I doubt she'll remember any of this when she wakes up. Put her in my room, I will look after her."  
"Are you sure about that, Sir? She's unstable."  
"Did I ask you to question my authority? My orders are absolute."  
"Yes, Lord. We will do as you say."

"Azula, don't worry, we'll get you back to normal."

* * *

"Man, why am I even doing this?" Sokka whined as he hung his head over the ferry's railing. "Why am I even spending my money riding this boat when I could have ridden on Appa? It's so expensive! And after _this_ I still need to pay for the train into the city! Argh! Oh, right. It was because of _that._" Sokka remembered why he was traveling on the ship and what made him do it. Ever since Aang's little blow-up, both Sokka and Katara agreed that he wasn't in much condition to fly Appa to the other lands. Sokka had tried to sneak Appa out last night, but the Air Bison would not budge and began to vocalize loud sounds of aggrivation and protest. As Sokka tried to quiet Appa down, Aang walked in the stable and scolded him. Aang was upset that Sokka would try to steal Appa and forced him out of the stable. Aang slept the rest of the night in that area, making sure that Sokka wouldn't dare again. Katara found out about it the next morning and hit him over the head, mad that her brother would even think of such a thing. When they asked him why he wanted Appa, he blushed and turned his head away. Before another question could be asked of him, he bolted out of Katara's house and found refuge in his own. He didn't want them to know what was going on, half of him didn't even want to know what was going on. He sat on his bed trying to flush out the red color in his face, but his jade sword was in plain view right in front of him. That reminded him of the very thing he wasn't trying to, or, the very _person._  
"What's your deal, Sokka?"

* * *

"Sokka, it's a simple question: yes or no. Do you miss your friend?"  
Sokka finally broke his stare on his sword and met his eyes with his father's. "Miss who, Dad?"  
"Son, were you even paying attention to my question? I asked you if you missed Toph."  
"Umm, I think?" Sokka answered, shifting his face into a, 'I'm really not sure, Dad.' look.  
"Ah, so you're trying to avoid the question. Or maybe you're trying to avoid her? It's been a long time, Sokka. She'd be what, 18 by now?"  
"Yeah, 18. I bet she looks really good right now, too." _Oops! I didn't just say that! Aww, man..._

"Hahahaa! I knew it! You can't hide things like this from your father, boy. What do you mean that she looks good now? Didn't she look lovely before?"  
"Yeah, of course she did, Dad. I thought she always looked good. It was just..." _Dude, just confess it already. If Dad knows, the rest probably do, too._  
"Was just that she was too young? You're still 3 years older than her, Sokka," Hakoda said with a laugh.  
"No! Nothing like that! I had just gotten out of a relationship a few months prior and I was going to leave the next day after she told me. Besides, she was so upfront and forward that she nearly scared the crud outta me. How was I supposed to answer her after that?"  
"Son, put away your sword and sit down. We have a lot to talk about."

After that conversation, Aang and Katara were outside the building waiting for him. He didn't realize it at first, but his face was still bright-red from talking about Toph and since he had tried to steal Appa the previous night, they could figure out what was going on. Some yelling and embarrassment took place afterwards and he then just gave up and accepted it; he hadn't been able to get Toph out of his mind since he left her in the first place. He asked to borrow some money from his dad to get him to Gaoling and he just laughed. "Boy, what are you going to tell her when you get there? 'I came to visit you, but I couldn't pay my own way?' That won't really win her heart, you know. Pay for it yourself."

* * *

He breathed in the brisk outside air as the ferry traveled down the water and looked pleased. "Oh man, that really does feel good. I missed this feeling, wooaah!" Sokka let his sword gleam in the shining moonlight and it was funny because not only did his sword remind him of her, but the full moon itself did. He owned one of Toph's earrings that was on his sword and the moon now looked like her second, like she had put both of them on just for him. "The moon, huh? Well, Yue, I know you're still watching over me and I hope you always will, but I think that this time I've found the girl I've always dreamed of." _That's right, Toph. I'm finally able to admit it, sorry it took me so long to figure this mess out. I think I love you, so you better love me too._

_

* * *

_

"Aaachooo!" Toph sneezed, almost falling out of her bed. "Heh, well I guess that means somebody's thinking about me, huh? Although this late at night, I seriously doubt it," Toph recalled from ancient folklore and superstition claiming that if one sneezes randomly, an attractive person is there thinking about them. She blew her hair up with her lower lip and rested her hands behind her head as she repositioned herself on the mattress. How late was it, anyways? Sometimes not being able to see sucked so much, that she hated it. Sokka would always talk about how pretty the stars were and how the Water Tribe would always navigate with them, and she would always hit him, pointing up to something in the sky that she couldn't see. Most of the time she didn't even care, she was used to it, but she wanted to see what Sokka saw and for some stupid reason this evening, there she was wide-awake thinking about him and everything else.

She had even dreamed about him the night before, dreaming that they were together and... having nature take its course. It was funny how she could sometimes see in her dreams and whenever she could, she always tried to picture Sokka as this incredibly handsome man, having everything she ever wanted. Her face turned an extremely bright-red and she became flustered and felt warm just even thinking about that dream. What a crazy idea anyways, she didn't even know _what_ she wanted. Just what was wrong with her?

"You'll look mega-cute when you grow up, Toph." His words 'haunted' her since that day, making her think that he meant that she didn't look good enough for him at the time. Maybe that was true, maybe it wasn't, how was she supposed to know? The whole concept of a boyfriend was foreign to her; as it had always been. Maybe Sokka was perfectly fine in saying that? Maybe he didn't mean what she thought he meant? Who knew? And for that matter, who cared? "Well, I guess I do..."

"Sokka, we'll see each other again, won't we?" she asked him during their last morning walk in the city together.  
"Huh? Don't be so stupid, Toph. Of course we will. Well, I will. Not so sure you'll be able to see me," Sokka said, nudging her with his elbow, "Maybe I'll sneak up behind you when you least expect it and surprise the mess outta ya."  
"Impossible, Sokka. I'd feel you coming a mile away and you'd be half-dead before you even tried to touch me."

"Well, I could use that touch right about now, Sokka," Toph said, still in her bed as she reminisced about past so many years ago. "No! What did I say? I'm strong! I don't need this! Araaggh!" Toph sat up and allowed her feet to dangle above the hardened floor. "Sokka, you stupid Meathead. Why is it that whenever I think about you, all my defenses just completely shut down and I feel so vulnerable? It's not fair, you idiot. It's... I don't know what it is."

Things in Gaoling had been relatively peaceful after her return just as it always had been, even during the war since they managed to stay out of it, but after the victory, it eventually turned sour. Hysteria, happiness, enthrallment, malice, almost every conceivable human emotion passed through the Kingdoms and found their way to her home town. It didn't happen right away, she was able to enjoy her life and everything about it for a good two years until things started to get haywire. Since the Avatar had requests in the bigger cities and Gaoling was such a small area, their news never spread. As part of the Earthen Kingdom, and still as stubborn as their element, they didn't reach out for help and since the place was small, logic argued that it'd be easy enough to silence any type of rebellion.

Toph volunteered to maintain order and stability, and given her strength and reputation, nobody dared to question her or even refuse her services. The riots in the streets were quickly met with her fists and any retaliation was snuffed out with her mighty abilities. Things seemed to be doing okay in the city, but there was an omnious presence somewhere unseen that could have been the very cause of it all. The Dai Lee were mostly under control by the Fire Nation, but she knew that some had escaped and returned to the Earth Kingdom, either starting a new life or starting something else. If they _were_ responsible for the chaos that had spread to her city, it wouldn't make much sense seeing how most of their power had been decimated shortly after the new Fire Lord was proclaimed. Whatever the reason and cause, she could never figure out and even though much of the rebellion had been quieted, there were still a few instances and something deep inside her that a bigger problem was on it's way; whatever that was.

She really hated to admit it, but despite all of the stupidities Sokka had displayed over the time she knew him, his sense of intuition and strategic genius was some of the best she had ever known. Besides which, he would be able to see things she couldn't. Not to say the rest of the people in Gaoling were a bunch of morons and couldn't figure anything out, whenever the authorities came close to finding the mysterious causes, something would happen that would either kill them off or erase every trace, making it impossible to be discovered. Because of this, Gaoling decided that searching for the unknown force was too dangerous and too costly as most of their best soldiers were either maimed or killed, that they'd only deal with the lesser instances whenever they occurred. Politcally and militarily, it was a very smart move, but Toph hated how weak it sounded and felt and she really wanted to do something. She could take care of herself no problem, she never worried about her own safety, but her family was a totally different thing. They'd probably be killed in no time and since relations had been repaired, she didn't want anything else to happen to them. She was never one to worry like a pathetic girl, she always aimed for dominance and strength, but a danger she couldn't see would be enough to make anyone worry, or at least she hoped; she didn't want to be labeled weak even though she had no control over what she didn't know.

"Man, this totally bites... Got a bunch of crap outside of these stupid walls, a bunch of crap inside my head, my heart... I hate being so emotional, somebody please just put me out of my misery. Ugh."

* * *

"I'll have one ticket, please," Sokka asked the lady behind the desk at the train station, almost ready to crash from lack of sleep.  
"Sir, just because this train runs late, doesn't mean you actually have to ride it. Those black circles under your eyes prove that you're ready to pass out. Gaoling's still a few hours away from here, too. If you still want to pay, go right ahead, you just look so unusual that I thought I'd say something."  
"Errrgh, one t-t-ticketttt pleeeeasssseee..." Sokka repeated, jolting his head back up each time it fell down.  
"Okay, well it must be important if you're that desperate to get there. Or maybe it's because you want our cheapest fare?" she asked, winking at him.  
"One ticket, please––" Sokka said, dragging out the final word in his sentence, so exhausted that his mind couldn't release itself from that thought.  
"Alright, alright. I heard you the first two times. Here you go. Your train leaves in about an hour, don't miss it, okay?"  
Sokka slowly reached out and grabbed the ticket responding with, "Unh-huh. Sure."

It was 4 AM by the time Sokka received his ticket and he was told that his train left at 5:00. He slothfully worked his way to the waiting seats and immediately hung his head as soon as he sat down. It was too late now, but maybe he should have had waited until the next morning to buy his ticket. The station would have boarded him for the night and he'd be well aware when the sun came up, but he had a mission to do and he wanted to see it finished. There was another reason, also: The 5 AM departure was a lot cheaper than the busy morning/afternoon and he still had to get back, the less he spent the better. Then again, this could have been a foolish mistake. Toph was never one to wake up early or even on time and she had always complained about it during their travels. In fact, she nearly broke his neck one time when he gave her a slight shove to wake her up one morning. Granted, that was the last time he did that, but it's not like he could forget either.

The train would arrive at Gaoling around 8:00, and he didn't know what he'd do after that. There were rumors going on inside this station about how Gaoling had trouble in their streets, but Sokka was too tired to understand the few people around him. Gaoling never had any trouble, perhaps they meant 'carnival?' It sounded like it, would be lots of fun, too. "A carnival! Ooooh!" he said picturing himself and Toph enjoying the day through all the events despite all the people back in reality looking at him like he was some type of moron. "It'll be so early when I get there. Toph will be mad if I wake her up at that hour, much less her family actually allowing me to come in. I'm probably still on their blacklist or something."

"15 minutes until departure for Gaoling!" shouted the engineer, which snapped Sokka out of his almost-sleep. "Oh, I need to board or whatever. Don't want to miss my train." He walked extremely slow to the train, staggering like a drunk man every so often. Once he reached the car, he handed the conductor his ticket. The man looked at him and rolled his eyes, wondering why somebody that exhausted would even bother getting on. "Don't miss your stop, boy."  
"Yeah, sure, whateverrrrr..." Sokka said as he plopped himself down into the chair and instantly fell asleep.

The next thing he knew, someone was shaking and poking at him until he awoke.  
"Hey, you! Get out of her! We need to clean the cabin!"  
"Hawha? Where am I?" Sokka asked, completely unaware of just about anything.  
"Gaoling. Now get out of here before we decide to lock you in."  
"You can't do that!" Sokka exclaimed, finding new life. "Where's the door? Let me out!"  
"Kid, calm down. Just walk out of here. You're lucky that we had to service the train, here. Normally you'd just be kicked out once you returned from your initial spot."  
"I'm out! I'm out!" Sokka freaked, still half-asleep and tripping over himself as he fell out of the car.

Sokka picked himself back up and checked his belongings. His pack, his sword, and wallet were all accounted for and still secure. He breathed a sigh of relief and shook his head, opening his bag to see what was still left inside. "Hmm, should have packed a bit better. I only have enough left for breakfast. Well, whatever. I'd have to buy the stuff when I left anyways. Let's eat." He found a small table under a tree close to the station's exit and he enjoyed his meal, having it more or less wake him up. The cold meat sandwich was great and he finished the last of his water before walking off. "It's 8:30, Toph. I don't care, I stayed awake all night for you, so I'm coming to wake you up." Although still stumbling from lack of sleep, he made his way down the stone paths of the city until he found himself staring at the Bei Fong Gates.

Still awake, Toph finally got herself out of bed and dressed her short yet slender, teenage body with her everyday clothes; a green blouse with shorts and a tanned jacket overtop. "Blast. Stayped up _all_ night long. Now what am I going to–" she stopped her sentence short once she felt the vibrations of a certain stranger outside her gates. Stranger?

"No, it couldn't be..." she raced through her house as fast as she could while still being able to visualize her surroundings, and nearly slammed into the front doors. She could feel her heart beat faster than she could count and everything within her blared, "Open the door! It's _him!_" along with another voice saying, "Turn around, you fool! Don't you dare open those doors!" Toph held her head and ruffled her hair in frustration. "Shut up! I know!" She threw open the doors with great force to get the sounds out of her head and stopped once she descended the final step, feeling who was actually there. She could hear the man's heavy breathing and erratic pulse rate once he saw her. He felt so real, so very, very real. It had to be him, she had no doubt. Well, maybe just a little; it was so surreal. She walked with weighted legs to the gate bars and felt for the lock. She undid it and the gates swung open, almost hitting the stranger in the face.

Toph could now see his muscular body type, and the outline of his sword at his side. A sword? That settled it, it _had_ to be him now. She touched the young man's face and moved her hands and fingers around freely, feeling every centimeter and shape of his skin. She moved her fingers over his lips and stopped there for a moment before moving on. She finished with his ears and then clamped her fingernails into his skin. The sound of the man's yelp of pain proved to her what she had originally thought. She dropped both her hands to her sides and the arms trembled. Her right palm was made into a fist and she lunged at him with the closed hand, landing her punch in the dead center of his forehead.

"About time you got here! It's been five years, you jerk! You stupid... Meathead!" Toph said, with a single tear streaming down her left cheek.


	7. Real Life Nightmare

**Chapter Six: Real Life Nightmare**

It was the early morning and Katara was happy at finally seeing her Aang sound asleep, peacefully dreaming. It had been over a week since she last saw him like this and she didn't want to wake him. Over the nights, Katara found it less and less likely that she'd get any sleep seeing how Aang would always make her jump out of bed, and here she was now, watching over her beloved. Their roles had changed for the night; Katara was awake and Aang was asleep. Sure, he had woken her up numerous times during the past days, but this time he hadn't even budged and she was the one jolting out of her sleep. She wondered if this was how Aang felt, looking over to his peacefully sleeping spouse while he had turmoil wrenching his soul.

Not exactly how she felt, though. She couldn't begin to imagine what Aang was feeling, what he was thinking, what he was even doing. Every single night except this one he writhed around in torment, imaging things in his mind he never thought he could. The night before this must have been the reason he was so silent, so calm. She remembered when he shook her out of her sleep and asked to talk.

"Katara, I need to talk to you."  
"What's the matter, darling? You alright?"  
"Yeah, I'm not entirely sure. I keep having these dreams of things I've never done, yet it feels like I have."  
"You're still on that, Aang? It's only a dream, sometimes they can feel that way."  
"No, that's not true, Kat. It actually _does_ feel like I've done it. I can even hear my _own voice_ speaking those words and my own _hands_ doing it! Doing... Doing..."  
"Doing what, Aang?"

"...Ending a life..." he said solemnly, hanging his head low.  
"Aang, didn't I tell you that you'd never do such a thing?"  
"Yeah, but..."

At that, Katara pushed his chest down back onto the bed and covered it with her head and hair. "Aang, believe me when I say it's okay. I don't care what those dreams are telling you, you didn't do it. Okay? Everybody has nightmares."  
"A nightmare? Well, you're right, Katara. I'm sure it'll go away."  
"There you go. Now get back to sleep, I'm getting tired of you constantly waking me up."

Katara twirled her hair with one hand and smoothed over Aang's head with her other. His eyes squinted, but he made no other movement and she kissed the top of his head. "I'm glad to see that you're finally resting, Aang. I was really, really worried about you, you know? Please don't ever scare me like that again, you were really horrifying." Katara moved her body over towards Aang and hugged him. "Don't ever leave me."

* * *

"Don't leave me, Aang! Where are you going?" echoed a distant voice.  
"What? Where are you?" Aang asked, running through the pure white space, with nothing else around him.  
"I'm over here, Aang! Save me!" the voice pleaded, now sounding closer, but still not being able to see anything around him.  
"Over where? There's nothing here! Nothing but blankness! I can't see the sky, the ground, anything!"  
"What are you talking about, Aang? You don't know where you are?" bellowed a deep gutteral voice under his shadow, the only shadow in this vacant realm. The black marking began to rumble and stretch, creating very disturbing and ugly shapes.

Aang fell to one knee and hugged his stomach in pain. "Oh? You can feel that, Aang?" the Shadow asked, words matching each shape distortion, "That's good, yes. Love it. How is it? Comfortable?"

Aang gripped his palms from the pain and coughed up some blood, pooling it onto the invisible stable floor under him. His eyes shook wildly and fingers started to tremble. The thrown blood oozed into the black Shadow and was colored in a horrendous dark red. The red Shadow now looked like boiling lava, blood bubbles popping every so often and with each burst, bringing Aang farther down until his other knee fell. "What's...going...on..?" Aang asked in short breaths.

"Aang! What are you doing? Help me!" Katara's voice rang in his ears.  
"K-Katara?" he spoke, slowly rising to his feet, wavering from the dizziness.  
"Didn't I tell you that I'd kill her, Aang?" the Shadowed voice said, now rising into the air and forming into a blackish-red silouhetted figure. "She's gonna die."

The blinding white world around Aang twisted and turned with a grisly scream and all colors of the spectrum swirling into each other until finally creating an evil black, choking the air out of his throat. The Shadow's form was now blended into the atmosphere, leaving only a dark red outline of its figure. Aang's mouth was silent from words, gasping for air. He clenched his fist and tried hitting the 'ground,' but his hand never touched anything and streaked through the dark nothingness.

"What's the matter, Aang? Can't get up?"

"S-s-stay...aw-ay...from...Katara!" Aang said, trying to regain his breath and looking at the unknown person with hatred in his eyes. "She's mine!" Aang charged the form and his arms passed right through, leaving Aang to fall back down on the opposite side from the momentum. The stealthed mysterious figure turned into a vapor and dispersed into the air.

"Aang! Where are you? He's going to hurt me! He's, he's, no! Leave me alone! Aaaaah! Aang, help me! SAVE ME!"

Katara's horrid scream echoed everywhere and her screeching painful voice felt like a halberd being pierced through Aang's entire body. His eyes burned with acid tears and everything around him became shaky and unstable. Enraged, Aang stood to his feet and shot intense fire without direction and thought. When his furious Bending was done and he came to his senses, he noticed that he was still alone and the space around him had grown darker. "Where are you? Give her back, you monster! I want my Katara!"

"_Your_ Katara? Who ever said that she was? What even gives you the right to be happy, Aang? How could you be? After what you've done?"  
"I didn't do anything! I don't even know who you are!" Aang shouted, Bending a small ball of air and throwing it into the blackness.

"Of course you do, you've had this coming for a long, long, long time. You're such a liar." The Shadow contorted its 'body' out of the dark and wrapped its serpentine length around Aang, staring at him with an unseen face. With a deafening sound, Aang could hear this creature speak without a mouth. "I'm going to kill you, I have to."

Aang's face was shocked into horror at those words, having them cycle through his ears over and over. His eyes trembled, arms shook, and his knees wouldn't stop knocking together. The sound of Katara's voice eventually passed over and now her last call for help entered into the mix, having all the words merge as one. "Stop! Stop it!" Aang said, holding his hands over his ears, fingers digging into his skin. "I... I don't know what you want from me!" The Shadow melted into a black ooze and the realm around him immediately shifted back into white, within a blink of an eye. The outrageous change led Aang to close his eyes from the unwanted sudden brightness and a spell of dizziness overtook him once again. When he opened his eyes, a pile of black liquid had been pooled under his feet, preventing him from any type of movement.

"What do I want?" the demonic voice asked in response to Aang's question, "What I wanted was..."

"For you to save me, Aang," Katara's voice spoke with an echo of sadness. Her body instantly appeared in front of Aang and he was left immobilized, towering above it. Her elegant form clad in that beautiful Water Tribe dress was now broken, arms and legs pulled out of socket. The blood radiating underneath her body rivered down to Aang's feet and his eyes were locked onto hers. Her long brown hair was partly over her face, her eyes still open. Aang saw that her entire face had been bruised and her very fair skin down her neck and exposed arms were slashed, the cuts burying deep into her bone. "Katara?" Aang said in disbelief, still focused on her eyes. "Katara!"

Aang jumped out of his sleep and fell out of the bed, hitting his head on the floor. He wiped the sweat off his forehead and climbed back onto the mattress. Still a little spastic from his dream, he searched around the room and then rested his eyes back onto his wife, who was sleeping peacefully. "Kat... What is going on with me? It was just a dream, I'm so glad you're okay." Aang touched her bare shoulder and followed it up and down with his fingers. His hand reached over to the middle of her nightdress and onto her stomach. He rested his touch there, but widened his eyes when he didn't feel her breathing.

"Katara? Wake up, okay? This isn't cool." He felt over her cheek and tried to gently tap her awake, but nothing changed, not even a twitching of an eye. "Katara, this isn't funny, you know. Stop doing this to me." Nothing. "Babe? Come on now, I know you're fine." He bent his head down to her lips and gave her a kiss and then pulled away, feeling the touch of her cold mouth. "Katara? Katara? **KATARA!**"


	8. Those Good Old Days

**Chapter Seven: Those Good Old Days...**

Shandar walked the Northern Air Temple and often kept his gaze on the statues of Avatars past within the walls. There had been many before, from as far back as the history in the Temples allowed him to know. He was told by the elder monks that the cycle had now come to the element of Air, which meant that one of the Nomads would become the next Avatar. He was 16 now, around the age that the news would be told who the next one would be, and he really hoped it was him. This was very unusual for some, since they never found the attraction to an ultimate power and the duties that it came with. Most were happy just being themselves, just having their own abilities, and knowing that they would never have to worry about abusing their power or anything scary with that might.

He was stronger than the rest of them, anyways, he was able to master Airbending within the first ten years of his life and in his opinion, his special technique was the best out of all: he could twist and manipulate the air around him into a massive tornado, blowing anything out of the way. It needed a lot of work, of course, seeing how he could only maintain a small one, but he saw the potential. And the power. Once he showed the leaders and elders his new technique, they warned him about the destructive possibilities it held and he should never use it, unless if the peril was so great that nothing else would be an option. Shandar agreed, he knew senseless slaughter wasn't part of his teachings, and he never saw the need for it to begin with. He was a proud young man, just as his name implied, and many of the student monks in the Temple hated him for it; he always came off as a jerk and rude individual. Because of their neglect towards him, it only drove him more and more to obtain his special move, and to gain more knowledge and abilities afterwards. He was careful though; he knew that the addiction to power could come around, even for the monks.

Shandar stood near a railing, facing the clouds and took in a very deep breath, releasing it with the rest of his thoughts. Even though he could not see it from where he stood, he looked over to the west, wondering how his friend Yangchen was doing over there. It was really good that their Temples were divided between male and female because he knew that students would be distracted if both genders were present. Especially with Yangchen, he thought she looked pretty once his teachers took him there to pick his own Air Bison. Even though the Temples were divided into genders, they never acted alone. On many occasions throughout the years, he could recall all the fun times he had with her, just goofing off as little kids and helping each other train as they grew older. At the time, the monks found no problem having the boys and girls meet up every so often because they knew that the next generation would have to be born once they came of age, so the best way to accomplish that was for the children to know each other.

Pre-determined marriages were never their thing, either. All the monks in all four Temples believed in love and because of this belief, they were able to prosper and even befriend the Bisons. His own Bison he chose around the age of 8 was a very kind animal, and loyal beyond belief. He named it Anil, to honor the wind and air. Still day dreaming in the clouds, Anil flew up to him and licked his face. Shandar laughed and told him to stay in his stable for the time being because he needed to do something and Anil would be too big to walk around with. Anil looked depressed at first, but then cheered up once Shandar gave him a treat and went back to its pen without any protest.

There were many teachers and elders in the Northern Temple, but there was one in particular he wanted to find and ask why they haven't told him he was the Avatar yet, the sun was halfway and he knew that they were late in telling him. He walked to where monk Rinzen lived and opened the door; surely the Holder of Intellect would know what was going on. Surprised by Shandar's unexpected entrance, Rinzen had to regain his breath and once he had, he motioned for Shandar to sit down and talk.

"Shandar, is everything alright? You don't usually come in without telling me."  
"Why haven't you told me that I'm the Avatar, yet? I know I am," Shandar said upfront, sounding a little crass in his tone of voice.  
"Well this is odd," Rinzen said moving his head back, "most of the students here do not wish to even think that they could be the Avatar. That kind of thinking could even be considered brash and undignified, young Shandar."  
"Oh come on! I'm doing my best to follow all of the rules and I agree with your teaching! How could that be labeled as rude? Besides, I know I am the Avatar, so just tell me already. My Bending is better than the rest of the students in this Temple and I have a strange feeling about it, so why haven't you told me yet? I know I should be patient, but it's annoying."

Rinzen sighed and closed his eyes before giving his young pupil the answer. "Because you're not. You were never destined to become the Avatar or to even wield such an awesome power."  
"Whaat? That can't be possible, Rinzen! How do you explain my being the strongest here?"  
"The fact that you have surpassed most of the students here does not qualify you to be the Avatar, Shandar. The Avatar is very powerful, yes, but the Avatar's purpose is to keep balance to the world. Strength or no strength, the Avatar is much more than just that."  
Still in doubt, Shandar twitched his eye in frustration. "Alright, then who is? If you think I'm wrong?"

"Yangchen. It was determined by birth after she picked the previous Avatar's toys. That meant she was familiar with them and as such, the elders named her Yangchen, meaning 'The Sacred One.' The female monks over in the Western Temple told her only a few days ago. That's how it is, Shandar. Like I said, you were never destined to become the Avatar."  
"You lie!" Shandar shouted, very angry at the news. "You are mistaken!"  
Monk Rinzen smacked Shandar across the face at his words. "You have nerve to call your elder a liar, boy. It is also very disrespectful to claim that the Avatar cycle has made an error. Who gave you the authority to determine such things?"

"But... But I thought that..."

"Young Shandar, what you may think is truth and what actually is can often be very different things. You do not understand the burden that falls upon the Avatar, my student. Whereas we are taught that all life is sacred and should be honored, the Avatar must lay aside those beliefs for the sake of the world. Meaning that if the Avatar is met with a horrible decision of ending a life to protect another, then it must be done. You do not understand the pain and the joy that we go through when one of us is hailed as the new Avatar. And you do not understand the pain that is felt from the Avatar herself, being forced to master all elements and forsake her teaching if need be."

"That isn't fair!" Shandar stated, meaning both for the Avatar and himself.  
"Fairness has nothing to do with it, Shandar. Fate is fate, one can never run away from it or give it to another."  
"No matter what?"  
"No matter how hard they try or how much they want to. Do not belittle yourself, however, you possess great strength and you know how to use it to defend life. Never lust for power, pupil. I can see it in your eyes that you wanted to hold the might of the Avatar, but thinking like that will only lead to your demise. Be proud of the power you have and of the power you will gain over the years. Do you finally understand? Things will be much different for Yangchen from now on."  
"Yeah, I think I do. I don't like it at all and can't even believe that this is possible, but I understand."  
"Good. I'm glad to hear that."

* * *

"'Yangchen, you are the Avatar.' Yeah, sure. Thanks for telling me that, guys." That was part of the conversation Yangchen was now replaying inside her mind. That was three days ago, and ever since then, her entire world had been completely changed. Of course, that's what one would expect of the Avatar, but she was 'Yangchen,' not the 'Avatar.' Well, _now_ she was. How could she even possess such strength? It was hard enough mastering Airbending some years back, and now she was supposed to learn the other three elements? Her mind was riddled with so many thoughts and outstanding fears. Yeah, it certainly felt good being the Avatar, out of all the Airbenders in the Temples, she was chosen to become the next one in the cycle, but so many things were different now.

Her Airbending skills were superb once she mastered the art, and she even stood stronger than some of the elders in the Temples. She always dueled with Shandar whenever they had the chance, and sometimes he'd win, sometimes she'd win. Her special technique was of amazing power, too. She was able to mold the air around her into a very sharp invisible edge around her hands and the blade could extend as far as she wished. It still needed some work, but her form and her attack were of the highest order. "Yangchen, now that you know, you must learn Water, Earth, and Fire in that order to fulfill your destiny as Avatar and protect the world. You will leave within the month, so be sure to have everything you need acquired and ready."

That was three days ago, and she had done very little packing. She didn't want to leave her sisters or her teachers in the Temple to go on a long and fateful journey. She didn't want to leave Shandar, either. The two of them spent much time together when allowed and had grown to be very close friends. She'd have to leave him and her favorite mentor; Sangmu, who was very kind at heart. Before this unwanted news, she'd help Sangmu out with the Air Bisons and made sure that they were properly taken care of. They were cute and she grew to love each one, and even felt a bit saddened whenever one was taken away to be another monk's animal companion. When she received her own, she was ecstatic. She named the young female San, a tribute to her teacher Sangmu, since she was the one who gave it. How could they just tell her to forsake the life she knew for 16 years and start a new one as the almighty Avatar? It was pure insanity, but she knew she still had to do it.

Sangmu walked by the open courtyard and saw that Yangchen was resting on top of her Bison, dreaming all of her cares away. Sangmu rolled her eyes at her young pupil's carefree attitude, but said nothing and walked over quietly to San. "Hey, Yangchen. Wake up."  
"I am awake, Sangmu. I've been for hours. Just watching the clouds pass by."  
Sangmu was a little surprised that one could stare blankly into the sky for hours, but said nothing about it. "Dear, how are you feeling?"  
"Terrible. Everybody expects me to be perfect, now. Like I'm some type of god or something."  
"But you're the Avatar now, darling. Try to not let it affect you," Sangmu said, now climbing up onto San and hugging her.

"I don't really care about that right now, Sangmu. I'm a human. That's all I am. I don't want to think about anything else. It's too scary. I'm way too gentle to hold this power, it's too heavy for me."  
"But isn't it a great honor to know who you've become?"  
"Yes, but I'd rather not have it. I only have 25 days left here and then after that, well, I won't see you guys for a long time if ever again."  
"Oh, so that's what's on your mind then, huh?" Sangmu said with a happy expression on her face.  
"Why else would I be sad, teacher? I spent my whole life here, how do you guys even expect me to leave? Why can't I just stay here the rest of my life?"  
"Because the Avatar needs to learn all four elements, dear. And if you don't, it'll make it that much harder for your successor. You haven't thought about that yet, have you?"

"No, now that you've said something about it. I still don't like it. Can't I give it to Shandar or somebody? I don't want this."  
"Shandar? That boy has his own problems. He desires too much power and can sometimes get lost in his goal for strength. I'm not saying he'd ever do something, but it's scary thinking about somebody who holds unimaginable power and looking for more."  
"It's scary for me, too!" Yangchen said, a stern look in her eye.  
"You are the world's hope, Yangchen. No one said it'd be easy, I don't think it's supposed to be, but without you, who knows what evils would befall on our precious planet? Even as a regular monk you swore an oath to protect this land."

Yangchen turned her back to Sangmu and whimpered. "Yeah, that's the problem. They told me that the Avatar may have to go against what I've been taught. I can't do that, Sangmu. I really, really doubt that I ever could."  
"Well, who says it'd ever come to that? You don't know. Plus, who says that once you finish your training, you can never return? You have to live somewhere, right?"  
Those words livened up Yangchen's face and she smiled for the first time the entire day. "I hadn't thought about that, actually. I like that idea, I really do."  
"That's good, then. Come on, let's get ready. Some of the children will pick their Bisons today and you haven't been around to help me yet."  
San yawned as if to say, "That's boring. Leave her alone," but Yangchen pet her and everything was fine.  
"Calm down there, San. It's no big deal. I found you that way, anyhow."

"Hey, Sangmu?"  
"Yes?"  
"Do you think I'll be able to do it? Like, is being Avatar this much of a drastic change for anybody or am I just too weak to accept it?"  
"Yangchen, I doubt that anyone could accept something that huge within the first hour of hearing it. It'd be such a dramatic change for anyone, and I'm not saying that, either. Half the people can't seem to get over when we change the schedule much less handle being the Avatar," she winked.  
"Ha, thanks. That makes me feel somewhat better. I'll help you out."

* * *

"If I can't be the Avatar, then I'll be stonger than her!" Shandar said in his room, after his 300th push-up.

He always knew that the drive for power was a dangerous road, but he didn't think that Yangchen should be the only one to protect the world; how could only one person keep all the Nations under control, even if she _was_ the Avatar? He had it convinced inside his mind that his friend needed his help and he'd do his best to achieve that power in order to help her out. He wanted to protect her, too. Somebody would have to look out for her while she did that weird training, right? He thought so. It sounded stupid at first, sure, but he didn't see where it would be much of a problem; there was nothing in the 'rule books' saying that it was forbidden. There was another reason too; in two years Yangchen would be old enough to marry and the Temples encouraged young marriages as they allowed more time for more offspring to fill the halls and continue their traditions and stories. It didn't mean that she _was_ going to marry at that age or that _he_ would be the one marrying her, but they were good friends ever since he saw her at the Bison Keep.

"I don't care how strong you're going to be, Yangchen. I will surpass you in Air no matter what you do. While you are busy learning the other elements, I will become the master of this one. That way, I can help you when you need it and also help defend our Temples. You can't do everything by yourself, you know. It's just impossible." Shandar finished his work-out and sat down on his bed, taking a short rest. "You're gone in 25 days, Yangchen. I promise you that I'll be so much stronger by then; I know how."

Shandar had heard many times about sealed books of ancient lore and history within the Temple's main library, but the area to it had always been secured. He knew that there had to be some secret knowledge there, maybe some forbidden techniques, advanced training regiments, perhaps even some unknown secrets to the very art of Bending and of things beyond. Whatever was in there, he wanted to know. His attachment to this new power he was searching for could be considered against his very teaching, but he was also taught to protect what needed to be defended and how better to do that than to continue his search for power? If love was greater than power, why couldn't his love to protect everyone be the reason to why he was gaining the power? He thought he was the Avatar and was wrong, but at least he knew he was right about this; he just had to be, no question about it. True love equals total dedication and his dedication was to his training and much, much more.

Shandar knew that he had obey the curfew set for him just like the rest of the students, but he also knew that all the students would be asleep and the library's court would be vacant. Up until the point where he assumed everything would be guarded, that is. Whatever was up there had to be worth a lot because the monks usually shared all that they had. Whatever had to be kept locked away had to be something powerful. For a moment, he had second thoughts and even wondered if this was a good idea, but something internal pressed him forward, ignoring any other logic. He wanted to do this. No, he _had _to do this.

The Temple lights went out and he waited for another 30 minutes before making his move. Once he thought the pathway was clear, he snuck out of his room in the dark and made his way to the library. To his surprise, the library doors were unlocked, so maybe that meant somebody was in here, or maybe that the library never closed its doors since knowledge was always taught as if it were a living thing. Whatever the reason, he didn't care; now he had to go in. The room on the very top floor that had the alleged documents was never guarded, the monks found no reason to, but the vault itself was securely locked and would take some effort to undo. He studied it a few minutes and figured that even if he could silently open the lock, the gears and doors would make a loud sound and he'd be found out. If he could hack it up like Yangchen could, he'd be in no problem. No way he'd tell her about this, either. She'd disagree with him and he'd be in so much trouble. There was still a very high probability that he would be in trouble; he didn't know how many things were in there, could only just be one. He tapped his head a few times trying to gather his thoughts and relaxed his already tense arms.

"There's got to be a way, and I've already made my decision so I need to see this through. A distraction, maybe? No. Yikes, _that_ won't work either. Hmm..." Shandar sat down and stared at the unusual vault; it wasn't like the Airbending ones at all, it only had one lock on it, and nothing about that lock hinted at Airbending to release it. The door was sturdy, too. It'd be almost impossible for someone to open it with force or explosions. It definitely needed a key, but he didn't even know anything about a key. All he knew was that there was something of high value locked away in this thing and there had to be a way to take it out. Every passing second he thought about breaking inside felt more and more like he was actually going against his very teaching, that what he was doing could in fact, be wrong. It wasn't like he was _actually_ stealing it though, right? He was taught that love is stronger than anything, but there also had to be a certain attachment to it; focus too much on power and you'll lose your love. Focus too much on love and not enough on power, you'd lose your life. What he was doing made perfect sense; if he had to balance both, he'd try to attain the highest power to achieve the highest love. This is what he had been taught, even though he may have twisted the lessons just a little to fit his purpose, but the principles and foundations were the same. This had to be perfectly okay, but why did he feel so horrible thinking about it?

"That's stupid, stop thinking about it. You're not really going to steal it anyways. You have all night, just find something in there and read it. You can memorize something like that." He checked his pockets and he still had a few sheets of paper and his sharpened writing tool. He could take notes if he had to, everything was planned for with the utmost care up to this point. He had no idea what it would be like and now he was stuck. He peered through the lock to maybe figure something out and he devised a simple idea. This could work, but he'd need precise control over his Bending in order to fit the gears inside and turn them without sound and without fail. The tiny opening was barely enough for him to even fit his finger through, the key to this sanctuary of forbidden information must have been very unique and protected. Since he didn't even know the vault needed a key, he had no idea where to even find it. The masters may have it, but he wouldn't know which one or even find a way to know. Besides, even if he did discover the location of the key, it wasn't like he'd be strong enough to overpower one of the teachers that taught him his very art. Again, this felt like a really bad idea and against everything he knew, but something inside him still lead him to believe that he was right even though the method was unorthodox.

"Alright, Yangchen, you work on your strength, and I'll work on mine. Here we go." Shandar peeked inside the hole once more and tried his best to memorize the structure and mechanics inside the system. "Okay, let's try this." He put his finger into the hole as far as it would allow, which wasn't much, and formed the air around him, expelling it from the tip. He controlled the speed of his air and carefully passed every obstacle in his way. It was nearly impossible, and was draining his breath just trying to control his movements, but with the final click, he managed to unlock the vault and open it silently. There it was; all he had to do now was just walk on in. He quickly turned around to check behind him in caution, but there was nobody there, so nobody knew. His feet were heavy, like they were bolted onto the floor. Thoughts of what he had learned still interfered with what he _wanted_ to learn, and for the millionth time, he was beginning to question himself and his actions again. Still, he came this far, it'd be pointless to turn around now, wouldn't it? Yeah, it would. He knew that, but he also knew lots of other things and didn't know lots of other things. His mind was in shambles until he finally lifted his right foot up in the air and stepped a few inches forward. Wasn't much of a move, but he could still inside this chamber and it was filled with many, many books. He could spend his entire life reading all of these and still not know enough.

The next thing he knew as his eyes searched the room, he was already inside, dead center. His feet were light but now his arms became heavy. All it would take was to just find one ancient book and he'd be set. Find true power, find true love. He knew he wouldn't focus too much on getting stronger and forsake the reasons for why he had that power, but if he was going to train and get stronger, then why not find the best techniques possible? It was getting late, he was sure of it. Probably only had two hours left before everybody would wake up and he had to still find what he was looking for and escape. Sweating, he came across a very peculiar tome and opened its front cover to reveal the text. It was a very small piece of literature, but it seemed like he had stumbled onto something significant.

The Forbidden Binding was the title of this book, supposedly sealed away for countless ages. The information inside was incredible, unbelievable. Who would have known that a mere Air Nomad could do such a thing? Especially since the Avatar was supposed to be the bridge between worlds? True, he saw some deadly affects that might take place if he tried this, and the reason it was kept locked away was most definitely for the safety of others so they wouldn't experience the same fate, but it looked promising and he was strong. He knew he could accomplish this amazing feat.

"The Soul Circle? With these forgotten runes of the past, I can bind myself into a circle and release my soul to temporarily enter the Spirit World? This is insane! There's no telling how much power I could acquire there! I need to write all of this down!" Shandar furiously scribbled every last page in the book onto his papers and after he shook his hand a few times to relieve the tension, he positioned the 'stolen' book back where he originally found it. He was burning up now, the excitement over new information and the possibility of still being found out raced through his blood. The thrill was intense, scary, needed. Something was telling him that he needed this power; this technique that only he would know. It wasn't fair that he was never born as the Avatar and some girl got the honor. He really felt happy for her, there was no doubt about that, but his goal had been destroyed and now he searched for something greater than what he already knew.

Shandar was riding the line at this point; and he probably knew it, too. There was a reason these texts were sealed away, maybe even thousands of reasons. "All living things are sacred, Shandar," he recalled his mentor Rinzen telling him, "It is through our teachings that you will grow to learn this and through your training you will understand how to protect what is sacred." Shandar finished closing the vault door and was somehow to lock it up again before escaping back into his quarter.

"Understand how, Rinzen? Oh, I'll understand it. I'll learn how to protect what I love and all life through this training and aid the Avatar in her quest as well." Shandar looked out his window and determined from the position of the sun that he had around an hour or so before the morning began and everyone woke up. "I need to sleep, but... do I have time to read what I wrote down? This is very interesting and I'm... I'm curious. That's all I am, I'm not trying to abuse this knowledge or anything. Just a quick peek, nothing too major, just a..."

His sentence faded away as he took out his notes and ran his fingers over the speedily written words. The language was very old and hard to understand, but he could decipher it after some mental work and time. It took him longer than he had wished, though. The sun was coming up and he didn't have much time left, he had to hide these papers somewhere secure. It'd be too risky keeping them with him everywhere he went and there was also the chance that he'd be tempted to look at them. Temptation was wrong, he knew it, and he wanted to stay away from it. It wasn't like he was tempted to look at this book anyways, he was just... just curious and looking forward to the next chance he'd have. Painfully, he hid the pages in a very discreet location and wanted to get back to them as soon as he could.

* * *

Yangchen hugged San and let out a short breath. Ten more days and she'd be leaving the Western Air Temple, and possibly, forever. Her skill in Airbending had reached its pinnacle and all she had been doing since was studying about the Avatars before her and learning how they kept balance to the world. She was impressed with the records, but the thought of keeping order no matter _what_ the cost was the extreme opposite of what she knew all her life. It wasn't fair that she was born into this power, or at least it wasn't fair that she had to relearn many things. Peace at any cost meant that if it came right down to it, she'd have to end a life. She read about previous Avatars who had to do such a thing, but they were never Nomads; they were never taught that _all_ life should be protected. In a way, it was a huge contradiction because if she was taught to defend all life, how could she do that if her enemy was destroying the same lives she was sworn to protect? If she killed her aggressor, she'd go against what she believed. If she allowed that person to live, what was the point if they had killed so many?

The concept was too frustrating; she was blessed with a high honor in becoming the next reincarnated Avatar, but could she ever do if it came down to the ultimate choice? The two opposites had combatted against each other since the day she was told and it was wearing her down, exhausting her very soul. It was stupid to even think of the matter realistically because there was no guarantee that she'd ever have to do it, most of the time that option was hardly chosen by the past Avatars, and even though she hated hurting people, she could accept that she had to do it in order to save the world. She finally let her disturbing thoughts go and took flight into the clouds with San. The warm afternoon breezes and currents felt relaxing and for hours, nothing else existed on the entire planet. Once the moon showed itself and San made some displeasing tiresome sounds, Yangchen decided to come in and land. "Come on, girl," she said as she walked her to her stable, "I'm still wide awake, but you need to get some sleep." San made a grunt in agreement and rubbed against Yangchen's shoulder. "There you go, girl. Now get some rest, okay?"

Yangchen felt the chill night winds and walked over to a large open training field. She had been able to perfect her Invisible Sword technique, allowing it to stretch as far as 30 feet and control its sharpness with her concentration on the Bending. She could use this with both her hands and integrated her fighting style with its movement, a truly fearsome and powerful ability. She Bended multiple air balls and timed herself to see how fast she could make and throw them. Tomorrow she would ride San over to the Northern Temple to say hello to Shandar and try to make her last few days here worthwhile. She had refused to pack for her journey and literally had nothing to carry with her; she didn't like thinking about leaving her wonderful home. Eventually she would had to, but until she felt like it, she wouldn't bother. "100 balls in ten seconds, that's enough for tonight, I really do need to get some sleep."

* * *

"Sleep? Who needs sleep?" Shandar said to himself in his room, reading up on the information he stole. He discovered that before the Elements, people used something called 'Spirit-bending' and were able to do some amazing things. This eventually led to the birth of the first Avatar, but this book had little history on that matter since it focused moreover on a certain part of the Spiritbending. Because the power of the Elements weren't really available for their use, they Bended their energy and spirit to accomplish many things. Again, the history wasn't too clear on that matter, but the one thing it explained was beyond Shandar's comprehension. The user's spirit was aligned much closer to the actual spirit world when they used their powers, and the Soul Circle focused mainly on that aspect. For many days now, Shandar would write the runes on his floor in a circular pattern and erase them whenever he left or whenever it was time to sleep. Once the Circle was completed, he would step inside and focus on releasing his spirit, something that only the Avatar should know how to do. It was probably because of techniques like these that the Avatar came into being and the knowledge to the spell either forgotten or locked away.

The process was very complex and difficult and even the slightest mistake or breath out of place would kill the caster. Even a single thought geared towards something else would break the spell and end the user's life, forever trapping it in the spirit world. Every time he did it, he had total focus and transfered himself to the realm, a very dark and morbid place. He didn't think the entire world looked this way, but for some reason, he was always released here. To his disappointment, he wasn't allowed to Bend anything in this place, and he wondered why that was and what the point to the Circle had been. Nothing really happened the first time he appeared, not even a spirit or a demon. He could only stay a few brief minutes, but the thrill of it all 'forced' him into going back for more. Every time after when he entered, the spirits began to take notice and some even conversed with him. They were terrible conversations, and he was trapped inside the realm until they decided he could leave. At that, he was able to learn how to draw from their power inside the Circle, but also still inside his own body. Through this, it was like he was literally trapped between the two worlds, not really in the spirit realm, and not really inside his body. A 'limbo' of sorts, one could say. It was because of this that he discovered the true meaning behind this forbidden spell; he could sap the energy of the spirits and Bend while still being away from his body.

His Bending was different now, almost not like Bending at all, maybe it even wasn't. Whenever he practiced his normal Airbending, that always remained the same, but when he practiced the dark arts he found in the spirit world alone from everyone else, things were so much different. He could feel an unseen energy build up inside of him and when it was released, the color of it was dark purple. After many attempts, he managed to combine this with his Airbending and the results were furious, he couldn't even describe how it looked. The best he could come up with was that his Air now had a dark stream to it, but it only worked with his Bending; the actual spirit world energy he acquired was not available by itself. It was like that power had latched itself onto his own natural Bending as a mutual relationship, one working with the other. It felt so good, nothing like he had ever experienced before. He could do massive things with this power and even though he risked his life more and more with each visit, he still had to go back, he thirsted for it. "The power of love should be expressed by your own power under self-control," he repeated, remembering all those boring days listening to his teachers. He assumed that they were still right but for now, he had a new purpose. Who cared about the teachings of weakened old men, anyways? It didn't matter what they said, and it didn't matter how much sleep he lost, it was all worth it. Every last part.

* * *

"Is this all worth it?" Yangchen asked herself as San flew her to the Northern Temple. "Maybe I should leave now instead of nine days, I'm starting to miss this place already. If I stay here any longer, it might be almost impossible for me to pick up my feet and walk away."  
For the first time since her grave news, she finally felt at peace about her role as the Avatar. She knew that somebody had to be one and that she had the highest honor in the world being chosen as the next in the cycle. Her only concern now was leaving the Temple. The small, insignificant chance that she'd ever have to kill someone hadn't crossed her mind since last night, after she was able to put her mind at ease. This morning had been wonderful, all except for the fear of her leaving her home.

To say that she was in complete control of the situation would be a lie, but at least she was able to get past that major obstacle; she concluded that there would be no point in worrying about something that may not ever happen, that wasn't what Sangmu taught her. She was always taught that even though she should look forward to the future and and prepare for the coming day, that she should never worry about things that she didn't know or that may never happen.

Even though her trip to the Northern Temple wasn't technically scheduled, she felt like she could get away with it, being the Avatar and all. Her hunch was correct when she touched down, and nobody complained since there was always something she could learn from each Temple. Some did feel like it was a minor abuse of her authority, but it wasn't really much of an issue to raise any concern, especially since she'd be leaving in a little over a week. The monks greeted her as she dismounted and she replied with a warm, friendly smile, one she hadn't been able to show for a while now. There weren't too many words spoken as she stepped into one of the large hallways, but she could feel everyone's reverence towards her. It felt good, but a little strange and awkward at the same time. "Um, guys? Please, that's making me feel a bit uncomfortable. It doesn't matter if I'm the Avatar, most of you already knew that before you told me. Stop treating me like some sort of god. I'm just who I've always been: a student of the Western Temple."

"Okay, Yangchen. We all just want to make sure we pay our respects."  
"Don't worry about meaningless stuff like that, I honestly couldn't care. Just treat me like anybody else. It's so annoying sometimes."

They didn't respond to that, but she could tell that they understood and she probably wouldn't have that 'problem' again until she left. She didn't have much time, she wanted to spend time with all her dear friends; Shandar included. Even though that boy was always a constant trouble, she enjoyed her friendship with him and she knew that he would totally support her position and maybe even find a way to help her, even if he wasn't old enough to leave the Temple. Yangchen nearly bounced right into Rinzen as she walked with her eyes either up at the ceiling or down at the floor to her feet. She lost her balance from the almost-sudden impact, and Rinzen took her arm, helping her stand.

"Thank you, Rinzen. Sorry that I didn't see you there," she apologized with another smile.  
"Ha, don't worry. I wasn't paying attention at all myself. Seems we're both at fault for this."  
"Hey, have you seen Shandar? I wanted to spend the day with him since all my friend back at the Western Temple are trying to steal all my time."  
"Shandar? You two were always good friends. If you weren't the Avatar, you all would probably have given birth to the new generation," Rinzen said laughing.  
"Hey!" Yangchen protested with a slight blush, "That's not funny! Stop laughing, will you? You guys have plenty of people to do that, I never cared about any of it."  
"Alright, young Avatar. You win. And to answer your question, no, I haven't seen the lad all day. Perhaps he's out training in secrecy, I doubt he'd still be in his room mid-day. Wouldn't be like him."  
"Yeah, you're right. He's much too energetic to do something like that," Yangchen agreed.

She placed her hand under her chin to think and tapped her foot at the frustration from wasting her time. "He has to be here somewhere, right?"  
"Yeah, nobody's seen him all day. Not even Anil. Maybe you should check on him, first. Some other monks fed him, but the Bison looks very depressed for some reason."  
"Aw, the poor thing! That Shandar! Fine, I'll check on his Bison first."

Yangchen waved goodbye to Rinzen and she ran straight towards where Anil was usually kept. She found the saddened beast curled up and very lonely. She walked up to him and began to pet his fur. "Anil, what's the matter? You miss Shandar, don't you? I know you almost as well as he does, you haven't seen him all day, huh?"

Anil whimpered and then bellowed a cry that actually made Yangchen shed a tear. "You poor thing! I'm so mad at Shandar right now! How could he forsake his best friend all day like this? Rinzen told me that you've been fed and all, but what's bothering you? Is Shandar okay?" Anil let out another cry and Yangchen wasn't sure if he was sad because Shandar hadn't taken him, or if he was said because Shandar was in danger. "Come on, let's go find him. San is waiting not too far, either. You can visit her too if you wish."

Anil lowered his head telling Yangchen to climb on and he flew her to Shandar's private quarter. Anil made some sounds that confirmed his friend was still inside and Yangchen made a disgusted look on her face. "That boy is going to be in so much trouble. Shandar! Get out of here, now! How could you leave Anil unattended all day? You're supposed to be with him! You better come out in the next few seconds or I'll have him bust down your wall! My baby San isn't too far behind us, either!"

Moments after Yangchen screamed, Shandar ran out of his door, shaken up and frantic from having to end his visit to the spirit world so fast. "What? What?" He said, still sweating.  
"What? You haven't been with Anil all day! How could you just leave this poor thing alone for so long! You're so mean!"  
"Oh, Anil... _Shoot, I was supposed to take care of him? _I'm sorry, I got carried away and lost track of time."  
Yangchen landed and Anil immediately cuddled against Shandar, sad that he hadn't seem him all day. "There. I'm surprised he still wants to see you."  
"Hey! It wasn't that bad, Yangchen! Come on!"  
"Whatever, Shandar. You remember what Sangmu told you when you got him?"  
"Yeah, probably... _What was it, again?_"

"She told you to never leave your companion's side! You've probably forgotten other things that you've been taught, too. I would never do such a thing to my mentor."  
"Ooh, big deal. You're the Avatar. You could get away with anything if you wanted."  
"No I couldn't, and I won't, either. Anyways, I came to see you since I'm leaving soon. Everybody was worried about you, they haven't seen you all day. Rinzen was especially worried. Everything alright?"  
"Rinzen should keep to his own business, I'm fine."  
Yangchen slapped Shandar hard across the cheek and he looked at her with anger.  
"Why you'd go and do that for, you crazy girl? That's uncalled for!"

"Uncalled for?" Yangchen said, annoyed that the fool couldn't understand, "You have no right to say that to one of the head monks! What's with you?"  
"Yeah, well he might lose his head if he keeps that up." _Woah, Shandar. What's going on?_  
"You..." Yangchen clenched her fist but released it almost as fast as she made it. "Friend, I don't know what's gotten into you, but it seems like you need some time to ease yourself. Let's go."

Go? Where did she want him to go? He couldn't leave, he had something important to do! She just didn't understand, that was the problem. Nobody could understand, for that matter. While all those weaklings were out practicing the same pathetic skills every day, he was actually progressing and learning powers beyond what any of the monks could teach. Maybe even powers beyond the own Avatar's, or at least, so he thought. "Go where, Yangchen? I really don't have much time to waste with you, you know."

"You're crass today, Shandar. I don't care how much time you have, and I'm going to cheat on you, here. You can not refuse the Avatar and she commands you to spend some time with her. Besides, Anil here really wants to be with you and I know the perfect place. I take San there almost everyday."  
"Ugh, where?" Shandar said, rolling his eyes.

"It's not here, it's in the valley. A very beautiful and wide field, you'd love it there. It's so nice and very relaxing. Something tells me that you really need it right about now. You're not acting like yourself at all. You're probably working too hard."  
"I'm acting fine, Yangchen. I haven't changed a bit. However, since you're forcing me into this, I'll go along. It's not like I have a choice."  
"No. You don't."

Reluctantly, Shandar agreed and got on top of Anil. Yangchen called for San, and they all left the monastery and after a short flight to the base of the mountain, they reached the described valley.  
"Yeah, okay. We're here. Happy? I'm bored already, Yangchen."  
"Boy... You keep this up and you'll _wish_ that you were bored, got it?"  
Ignoring the question, Shandar looked around the field. "So, what did you want to do here, anyways?" he asked, switching his tone back into his regular friendly self that his friend always knew.  
"You want to spar? We could do that just like we always did, or hey, I was thinking about just resting here for the day."  
"Rest? Well I always thought you looked nice, Yangchen. I think it'll be fun just staying here."

"What? Don't even go there, Shandar! I don't care about that stuff, especially now that I have to give my duty to the world. Sangmu told me that my life will be completely different from here on out."  
"Sangmu again? You talk about her a lot, don't you?"  
"Why not? She's the best mentor I ever had. She's so kind too, she basically taught me everything I know. She's a blessing."  
"Well, Rinzen can be annoying at times, but he's a good man. He taught me most of what I know." _But he's still wrong, Yangchen. Sangmu is wrong too, you'll see._  
"So, Shandar, you'll support me, won't you?"  
"Support?"

"You know, being the Avatar? I doubt that I can do this alone, I'll need your help."  
"Sure you can, Yang! It'll be easy! I'm sure you can do it! And I'll be there too, I'll be cheering for you everyday until you come back."  
"Thanks, this is going to be so new to me."  
"If you want, I can come with you," Shandar said, moving closer to her on the grass field.

"Sangmu won't allow it, Shandar. Even though I am the Avatar, she still my superior and I have much respect for her. She told me that the Avatar's journey must be made without any emotional ties back to their home, it's a requirement for them to be detached from the things that would hinder them."  
"So I'd get in your way?"  
"I wouldn't say it like that, Shandar, but yeah, pretty much."  
"That's not really fair, Yang. I've been training to get stronger to help you."  
"There's nothing I can do. She's right. If I'm forever attached here, I can never move on. Let's just enjoy the few days I have left, okay?"

* * *

Shandar hated the last few days, hated what Yangchen told him. Not only did he have his goal shattered from birth, but now he couldn't even help the Avatar that he wanted to become. Attachment? Love? Who cared about any of that now? It held no importance to him whatsoever, and it shouldn't have ever. All the things that he was taught over the past 16 years seemed like worthless trash compared to what he had recently learned. His skin was growing paler from each visit and he was surprised Yangchen didn't notice. Speaking of Yangchen, this was all her teacher's fault. Yes, that Sangmu of hers. If it wasn't for her, he would have been able to help out Yangchen and more. He didn't care about that now, all he wanted to do was to surpass the Avatar, maybe even kill her to prove his point. One didn't need to be the Avatar to protect what they desired, anybody could, and he wanted to show her.

Sangmu was also a problem, during their day out in the field, Yangchen would constantly speak of her and all that she had learned. Most of it was garbage, just pure idiocy. How could such a kind-hearted person be able to teach her students how to battle? She couldn't, it'd be impossible. If they were expected to protect the things they found sacred, why wouldn't you be able to throw a few punches? Who cared if that person even died? If they died, the problem would be solved. Forever. That seemed logical, and in some twisted way, Shandar believed that he found a loophole in the rules and didn't think these ideas were wrong at all. In fact, quite the opposite, but if they reached the same goal, it didn't matter how it was executed. Nothing matter how it was done, just as long as it was done. A dark wave of energy fell over his eyes and he smiled, he knew what had to be done. Sangmu was the cause of all of this, she was such a heretic.

Tomorrow Yangchen would leave, but he wanted to make his point vividly clear before then, tonight he would do it; he'd show them all what his love represented and how to control the world. Yangchen invited him back to the Western Temple and now Sangmu was standing right in front of him. She noticed his eyes and only smiled, wondering why he was captured in deep thought. Dusk had set and Yangchen was to be left alone the rest of the day; her packing and some personal matters to attend to. Sangmu broke Shandar's concentration by touching his left shoulder. He jumped, but settled down once he realized what happened.

"Shandar, it's getting late. And this is a Temple reserved for only females, you know. You're not allowed here after a certain time. You should be heading out soon." Now was his chance.  
"Yes, thank you, Monk Sangmu. Can I ask you something in private, though? It was something Yangchen told me and I can't figure it out. She said that you taught her it, but it just doesn't make any sense to me at all."  
"You'll be staying later if I say yes, but I will personally fly you back if you agree not to take advantage of this opportunity. Here, walk with me. You can tell me what's on your mind." The two of them walked under the rising moonlight until they reached a secure location, away from the rest. "Now, Shandar, what is it that she said, exactly?"

_I can't believe you are asking that! You should know!_ he thought, "Well you told her that as the Avatar she'd have to detach herself from what she held dear in order to protect what she held dear? How is that even possible?"

"She asked me the same question, once. If your mind is clouded, it will block you from accomplishing everything. You must learn to let go of something if you wish to defend it. By doing that, you've allowed that certain thing to be freed from your mind and the lingering worry or pain will no longer be there when you fight. It does not mean for you to forsake all those memories, but to just have the will break out of their captivity if they are holding you back. Understand?" Sangmu placed her arm on his head and he backed away.  
"No! How _can_ I understand that? Makes no sense at all!"  
"Sure it does. You're the example of it, actually. Right now, your mind is clouded by what you think is right and what you want. If you were to go into battle right now, those thoughts would hold you back and may even take your life."  
"Oh," he said with a growing smirk, "I disagree."

The whites of his eyes transformed black and his pupils yellow. The color of his skin also changed, flushing out his normal tones with faded-out grays and whites. An aura of dark purple energy swirled around him and the veins in his skin tightened, exposing themselves through the translucent surface. Shocked beyond words, Sangmu jumped back a few feet and readied her stance.

**"Weak."** That word spoken by Shandar literally sent chills up her spine and just hearing his dark and twisted voice was enough to make her vomit. At once, she began Bending as many attacks as she could, but they all seemed to pass right through him, like his body wasn't even there. "Shandar! What have you done? What are you?"

"I am able to freely pass through the spirit world and this. I am standing on the verge of both right now, just try that again."  
"You beast!" Sangmu cried out, fearing for her life.  
"You were never meant to battle, were you?" Shandar said, gloating.  
"It doesn't matter! I'm still oathed to do what I can!"  
"And I've made my own oath, better than the rest of yours'. I've found my own power, the greatest power, and as such..."

Shandar pulled Sangmu towards him with a long connected strand of air and grappled her by the neck. "I've found the greatest love."  
"L-lov-ve?" Sangmu stuttered, barely able to breathe much less speak.  
"Yes, the love of this power has spawned a love to use it. To use it however I see fit and however I think needs to be done to protect the world. It's just like you all have taught us, but only this time, I've made it into my own."

Sangmu slowly lifted her arm up and Bended a large clump of air within her open palm. She fired the compacted ball into the sky and it made a loud, deafening boom. She may not have been trained as a warrior, but she knew how to call for help when needed. That sound alone would have woken everyone within the Temple, and she hoped that Yangchen would be the first to arrive.

"What did you just do?" Shandar accused with a strong voice, "You think that'll save you? You're the cause of all of this! That stupid flawed lesson of yours, and everyone else's in ALL of the Temples!" He squeezed onto her neck tighter this time, extracting small traces of blood from her skin.  
"That's it, Sangmu. I know what I am doing is right. There was never a doubt in my mind about that. You do not belong here anymore, you're only poisoning the minds of everyone around you."

A dust cloud from under her kicked up and within a second, Shandar was holding her in the middle of a small black twister. Without another word, he scowled and closed the monstrous storm in around her. Her screams were silenced by the evil wind and the sharp curves inside the funnel rended her body, mutilating every part of it in a bloody mess except for the head which Shandar still held. When the black wind dispersed, the once kind and respected teacher was now splattered on the ground, bones protruding from severed limbs and organs bursted open. He took very special care into keeping her head intact, just so he could show off his trophy to his favorite friend.

"SHANDAR!" he heard her scream as he saw the young woman sprinting to where he stood. He took pleasure in seeing the look on her face once she had witnessed the aftermath. "Sangmu! What have you done? What...in...the... Shandar! You..." Yangchen fell to her knees and broke into tears. She cried so hard and the pain hurt so much that her tears turned into blood, and that hurt her even more.

"What do you mean? She's right here, can't you see her?" He stuck two fingers in her mouth and shaped a smile. "See? There's that stupid smile of hers she always had. Everything's fine."  
Enraged but also crippled by grief, Yangchen could only make a short yelp as she stood back to her feet. "Drop her," she said, pointing at Sangmu's dismembered head.  
"Hmm?" Shandar said, taunting her.  
"I said drop her, you damn demon!" Yangchen's eyebrows raised after hearing her own words and was surprised with her anger, she never said anything like that before. Then again, she never saw anything like _this_ before.  
"Oh? It seems that I've got your attention, huh? Very well." Shandar dropped Sangmu's head and while it was still falling down, he obliterated it with a quick explosion of air. "There. Are you happy, now? I did what you told me to, oh great Avatar," he mocked, taking a bow.

"I... I can't believe you!" Yangchen screamed at the top of her lungs, eyes still blurred and burning with her red tears, "You will pay!" Yangchen Bended the air around her into both her hands and grounded her footing.  
"Really? How are you supposed to do that, hmm? You're all about saving the lives of everyone, no matter who they are and you wouldn't allow me to join you. In a way, this is all your fault, Yangchen. Hers too, of course, but she's dead now. Can't really blame something on someone that no longer exists. That'd be kind of odd, wouldn't it?"  
"Shandar, do you even realize what you've just done?" she asked him, wiping some of the blood off her face. "You just killed someone! Aren't you in pain? Regret? DON'T YOU FEEL TERRIBLE?"

"I feel nothing, Yang. Nothing at all."  
"Don't call me that! You're not my friend anymore!" she said, almost losing her balance and voice.  
"Then what are you going to do? Kill me? You can't. Ever. It's just not in you. Beat me up all you want, _girl, _you can't stop me."

"You're wrong. I can and I will!" She couldn't believe what happened, a part of her was still in denial. How could her best friend kill her favorite teacher? It just didn't make any sense or add up. This man standing before her was not the one she grew up with, not the one she always knew. She couldn't let this go, but she couldn't grasp the concept of killing him; but he had killed _her._ Was there anything she could do? Anything at all?  
"I'm waiting, precious. You going to just stand there or are we going to have a little fun?" Shandar said, signaling for her to come to him.

"_The Avatar must put her duties first, Yangchen. Even if they collide with her own personal beliefs, the Avatar has her own role in protecting the balance and order of things. Your duty is to the world first and to yourself second."_ The words of Sangmu were heard in her heart and she shed another tear.

"Aww, what's the matter, Yangchen? Crying again? That's so cute."  
"You..." Yangchen said as she took a few steps closer to him, "You've lost your mind, haven't you, Shandar? Pride's finally gotten the best of you."  
"I disagree, but whatever. It's not like you'll do anything about it anyway."  
"No, I'm the one who will disagree." Yangchen sliced her arm in the air and the force of her Invisible Sword knocked Shandar off his feet. He jumped back up and looked at her with surprise.

"What are you doing, Yangchen?"  
"I'm going to kill you, I have to," she said, finally understanding what it meant to be the Avatar. Almost as if he was degressing, Shandar began to whimper and run spastic. "No! You wouldn't think about it! What's gotten into you? That goes against everything you've been taught!"  
"You've gone against everything you were taught, Shandar. I am following the path that I have to take. Nothing's wrong with me at all, I know exactly what I'm doing, even though it's ripping me apart from the inside."

Shandar made a quick shield out of his dark powers but Yangchen's Sword cut right through it and sliced into both his shoulder blades. The wounds were so deep that his blood sprayed out, but he didn't show any sign of pain. "You're too far gone, Shandar. I'm so sorry. This has to be done." With his mind in a very erratic state, he was feeling fear and sense of conquest at the same time.

"No! You can't possibly mean that! Do you... Do you even know who I am?"  
"No. I no longer acknowledge your existence. Not after what you've done."  
"I didn't do anything! Listen to me! Please! This is all correct, I know it is! I've done the studying! This may be a bit different from what was taught, but it still has the same core! Listen to me!"

"Shandar, I refuse to listen to you. You never listened to Sangmu and save her, so why should I save you? I need to be fierce in order to protect this land, Shandar. You are too dangerous to be left alive. I really wish it never came to this, but you leave me with no choice. You said it yourself, if I let you live, things will only get worse. Shandar, you must die." After she said that last word, her voice screeched, trying to contain her hurt; two people would die this night and she didn't want either one to have met that fate. Her Invisible Sword slashed across Shandar's chest and then through his legs.

She closed in to his broken form and even though he acquired an insane amount of strength and power, Yangchen had virtually disrupted the flow once she had sliced through his shoulders. She sharpened the air around her fingers into a very fine razor-point edge and pinned him down with her knees. Her hand aimed directly at his heart and this would be the final blow, the killing strike. "I thought that I would never have to do this, Shandar. You've changed things around, however, now I have to. You've given me no say in the matter. I can see you, I know what you'll do if I let you leave even now. You mean nothing to me after what you've done. You can't even move. This strange power you found, you're still a novice. You should have never done this. Anything to say? You don't even deserve that much, so feel honored."

"Shut your mouth. I am stronger than you, I was born stronger than you. And even if you kill me, I'll continue to be stronger than you. So go ahead, let me see what you can do. You'll only seal your own doom because the moment I am able to get my revenge, I will."

"Then go ahead and do it. I don't care how many lifetimes it takes, I will never forgive you and I will always be ready." Yangchen plunged the air blade into his heart and kept it there until he died. The pain she felt from it was tremendous, almost death-gripping. It took everything she had to manage to say that she was going to kill him and almost killed herself emotionally in doing it. The undying anguish she felt from witnessing both deaths nearly tore her asunder, but she knew that she had to learn to overcome this pain. Her role as the Avatar was made much more clear after this battle and even though the price was too high, she had learned that if there was ever another Shandar in the world causing problems, then that's why the Avatar existed.

Once her understanding of this was complete, she knew that she had to work her hardest in learning the other three Elements. After she properly burried both of them and forced the Temples to give both a legitimate funeral instead of just Sangmu, she vowed that she would never let an incident like that one ever happen again.


	9. Better Off Dead

**Chapter Eight: Better Off Dead**

It was early morning, probably around 8:00 AM, and Aang hadn't broken his stare on Katara. He'd been up for hours ever since his shocking revelation. After shaking her multiple times without any response, he got out of the bed in a frantic state and nearly tripped over a chair in the room. He had no idea what to do, his mind was rattled and he couldn't process or verify anything. He almost ran to the door, but he stopped when he _thought_ he heard Katara make a sound. He sat down on the chair and watched her closely, but after some minutes, he found out that his ears were playing tricks on him. Still, the idea of her waking up at any moment held him captive inside the house and he found no strength to leave the room. He'd make a continuous switch between silence and spoken word, staying in his chair and looking at Katara. When he would speak, he'd plead for her to wake up, repeating the same words over and over. When his mouth and throat were dry from the lamentations, he'd remain silent; eyes dead-locked onto her seemingly lifeless and cold body.

She looked beautiful even now, he thought. None of it made any sense and she wouldn't die like this. She _couldn't_ die like this. Aang's body had been too weak to move and both fear and hope kept him suspended in his current position. He wanted to move, he had even tried moving periodically throughout the evening, but either he didn't have any legs to walk on, or they were attached to the floor. He couldn't figure out which and it scared him, bringing back that grotesque image of him standing above her misshapen body, unable to make a twitch inside the dream. He had no idea what these dreams were all about, and nothing ever seemed to help relieve him of them. Those dreams were the other reason he stayed awake all night, like most of the nights prior.

After seeing Katara like that, he was deeply concerned and that bloody picture of her kept replacing the real-life body, and at times, it was hard for him to even distinguish the two. That mysterious Shadow, whatever it was, was the same voice accusing him of doing the unthinkable: killing someone. Then he saw Katara's dead body in that dream. Did those two events mean anything? Did he really...?

No! There was no possible way he would have killed her! Not even if she was about to destroy the entire world. He was a fool for even having the absurd thought cross his mind. He sighed and looked at his love, if he could just move his arms and touch her, everything would be alright. She was within an arm's reach but for the entire night, he never found the strength or will to lift even his smallest finger. Katara hadn't budged through all of those hours and if she was able to, Aang deduced that she would have done so already. Unless something was wrong; and something _was_ wrong.

"Come on, Aang," he said, trying to get a hold on himself, "Just move one arm, one hand, even one finger! Come on!"  
Like his entire being had been carved out of stone, it felt like his arm was about ready to cripple under its own weight and trying to crush the very limb. A cry of sudden pain and tears came over him once he found the will to command the bones inside his arm to obey him and reach out to Katara. His palm was laid on her forehead and Aang actually fell out of his chair, drained from such a small movement. He took in a few deep breaths and closed his eyes, attempting to learn of Katara's condition through the Avatar State. He took in the knowledge from all the Avatars before him and requested for their help.

When there was no answer to his burning questions, he tried to trace Katara's spirit. After discovering it wasn't in her body or for that matter, this world, he followed her residual spirit energy and also hoped that their strong bond would help him find her. He could hear her cries echo around him, but saw nothing and as he drew closer to the sound, the atmosphere blurred and distorted into a multi-colored haze, preventing him from finding her location. At least one thing was for certain, she was still alive.

Before he exited out of the Avatar State, one of his previous lives halted him, responding to his questions and calls for help. His former self manifested her body in front of him and the hazy atmosphere faded away, transforming into a serene valley.

"Hello, Aang. Last of the Air Nomads."  
"Avatar Yangchen! What are you doing here? What's going on?"  
"Something from long, long ago, Aang. Something that I was forced to do."  
"What? What do you mean forced? How does this even concern Katara? She has no part in this!" Aang screamed, clenching his fist.  
"She may be innocent, Aang, but there is something else at work here."  
"Will you just tell me, already? I want her back!"

Yangchen saddened her eyes and lowered her head from the words she was about to speak. "Aang, there is something you need to know and the reason for your dreams."  
"What? You know of my dreams? Just what _is_ going on, anyways?"  
"It could be considered my greatest mistake, Aang. I need to tell you about your forgotten past. I was much like you long ago, Aang. Probably the reason you are being attacked now, you being the last Air Nomad and having a connection with me in your previous life. Unless if your Katara can birth another who can use Air, you are the final one and that's why Shandar is acting his revenge now."  
"Shandar? Revenge?" Aang asked with a worried expression.

"He was a dear friend in my life on this world, and our days at the Air Temples were always filled with fun and excitement. Please be patient, Avatar, you must hear this tale."  
"Patience won't save Katara, so hurry up."

"Unlike you, I was told that I was the Avatar at age 16, the proper revelation time. During that time, I never wished for it, and basically wanted out. After being told that my fate had been sealed since birth, I knew that I had to come to terms with it. Being the Avatar meant that I had to learn many things and even go against some of the peaceful teachings I was taught. I was afraid, Aang. It truly scared me."  
"It scared me too, Yangchen. I thought I was too gentle for that."

"So did I, but that's where the problem comes in. My friend, Shandar, learned of my new position and was jealous. He was also happy for me, but his goal unlike most of the other monks, was to become the Avatar and help the world. He knew nothing of the responsibilities, but he always wanted to find a perfect love with perfect power. I wanted to pass on my power to him, but that was impossible. Instead of letting it go, he longed to get even stronger and in his mind, everything was correct since he would use his strength to help out the Avatar with all her doings."  
"So far, I don't understand," Aang said, annoyed at her long-winded story.

"He lost his mind, Aang. In his quest for higher power, he stumbled upon forbidden ancient techniques sealed away after the birth of the first Avatar. With this knowledge, he was able to do horrible things, and flow in and out of the Spirit World freely, gaining even more power. His mind was warped and poisoned by the demons living inside that realm and as such, he killed my mentor, Sangmu without any reservation. He was far too gone, and was no longer Shandar or even human. He left me with only one choice and I regretted it all my life even though it was necessary."

"No, you can't mean..."

"Yes, I had to kill him. It nearly broke me from the emotional pain but if I had let him live, he'd continue to do monstrous things in his so-called attempt at love. Believe me Aang, I did not want to. I had already witnessed Sangmu being killed and now another would have to lose their life, and by my hand at that. He actually begged me to spare him, and it was Shandar speaking, not the demon. Still, my decision had already been made and I knew that as the Avatar, my duty and purpose was to protect the balance of the world, not to live a pacifist lifestyle. He threatened me at the very end, placing a curse onto my soul. He told me that if I killed him, he'd have his revenge and I wouldn't survive. What I told him next is probably why you are feeling such horrible pain right now. I told him that I wasn't afraid of him and would never forgive him, despite our past friendship. 'I don't care how many lifetimes it takes, I will be ready for you.' Those were my words and now it has finally come full cycle and the burden was placed onto you. I still believe that I could have prevented the entire situation but at that point, there was honestly no choice left to make. I plunged my Invisible Sword technique into his heart and killed him, releasing his soul into the Spirit World. I vowed since then that I would always put my duties as Avatar first for the sake of the planet if something like that ever happened again."

"You mean you did kill him! How could you? Did you learn ANYTHING at the Western Temple? You... You..." Aang clenched his fist, but realized that his hand would go right through her and that he couldn't really hurt an already dead spirit. "Why are you telling me this?"  
"Aang, trust me, I would never expect you to do the same thing I have and I understand your pain, but this is what you needed to know."  
"But why Katara? She didn't do anything!"

"Aang, it's apparent from your emotional stress on this matter that I can only stay here a few more minutes before you break. Katara is dear to you just as Sangmu was dear to me. She's probably considered as the replacement. You must save her, Aang. His killing her would be the very least of your worries, the best thing he could probably do to her, in fact. He could do so much more. You've heard it before and it's true, Aang, there are worse things than death." With that, Yangchen vanished and Aang returned to the living world. It'd been hours and was mid-afternoon now. He kept a trance on his wife until it was broken by a knock on the front door.

"Hello? Anybody there? We haven't seen you all day," said the voice from the other side.  
"Who's there? What do you want?" Aang asked, now climbing back onto the bed with Katara and holding her head tightly against his bosom, with his eyes locked on the door.  
"Aang? It's Hakoda. Everything alright? Katara missed her morning class with her students and Appa seems very worried about you. Also, there have been some very strange disturbances going on here and some are wondering why the Avatar hasn't looked into it."

_Disturbances? No way, It's bad enough already! I can't deal with any of that! _"Yeah, everything's fine," he said, shifting his gaze to Katara for a second.

"What about Katara? She okay? Let me in, Aang."  
"She's fine too. We're both fine. Everything's just fine," he said, pulling her closer and closing his eyes.  
"Aang, something's wrong, I can feel it. I'm using the key Katara gave me, I'm coming in."  
"No! Don't come in! She's... she's..." _Click._ The lock unfastened and doorknob turned. Aang held his breath in as the door creaked open, revealing the outside sunlight gleaming on the streets and half of Hakoda's body moving forward. Once the doorway fully swung, Aang buried Katara's head into his arms as Hakoda stood there speechless for the moment.

He drew his sword in fatherly instinct and almost charged Aang, when he noticed that the Avatar was holding back what seemed like endless tears and his lips were cracked from lack of water. The sword was dropped from Hakoda's hand and he walked up to them very slowly. Aang turned his back to him, but Hakoda gently touched Aang's shoulder and without speaking a word, assured him that everything was alright. "Aang? What's wrong with my daughter?"

* * *

"Mai, please. You're the only one I trust with this."  
"Zuko, I hate her. Why me? Just get all your goons to do your stupid work."

"Do it for me, Mai. Please. Since I moved her into my room to get her out of that cell, I've resided in the guest quarters. Nobody will go in there, now. They are all afraid of her. She's either unstable or unconscious. Also, since she had already killed the previous guards, I'm not sure if she will freak if she sees more of them. She will kill mother if she's there, and Azula might actually remember you. Nobody wants to come in to see her, now. If I put her back in that cell, I don't know what that will do to her brain. Only for today, alright? I'm moving her into a solitary room tomorrow where she will be kept under security, but she will still be comfortable. I need you for this."

"Ugh. Fine. For today only, Zuko. Have fun quelling all of those new uprisings telling everybody what to do," Mai sighed, rolling her eyes.  
"Thanks, Mai. I'll make it up to you later tonight," Zuko told her with a wink.

"Yeah, you better. This is a one-time deal, lover. Don't know why you care so much for her, anyways. It's annoying." Mai threw her hands up in the air in angst with a loud grunt and stormed off to Zuko's room. She'd rather be walking in that room for _other_ reasons, but she'd have to wait for their engagement to end before that happened. He proposed to her only six months ago and she didn't even care at first, it was just another thing. After a second look at the ring, however, it finally made her come to her senses and the first words out of her mouth were, "What took you so long, idiot?"

Zuko took that as her saying, "Yes," and he placed the ruby on his unemotional fiancé's finger. That was about as 'romantic' as things got and it was all cool with her, she was too cynical to really care one way or the other. However he said it, however he did it, didn't matter; it still happened, and she was happy because of it. Zuko never left her side once they got back together years ago, and she threatened to, 'break his face' if he ever tried that again. Their relationship since then had been wonderful, of course, but all of the constant political affairs and troublesome riots and such outside on the streets really annoyed Mai, seeing how she'd usually have to help Zuko out with the problem instead of just staying in her room and complaining about being bored. Being bored was one thing, but being forced to do something she didn't care for was another. Although, at times she did want to help out and at times it was needed. All in all though, most of it was pretty much annoying. Besides all of that mess, her relationship with Zuko grew over those years and now they were very close, and also very close to being married; only six more months. "Just hurry up and get here already, will you?" she told herself, wanting that wedding date to just come and get out of the way.

She stood at Zuko's door and cracked her neck before turning the key and twisting the handle. "You better take me out on a nice date for this, Zuko." Once the door opened, Mai found Azula on the bed, exhausted. Mai was surprised Azula never tried to escape, but her mind wasn't the most logical device in the world now; she probably didn't even know that there _was_ an exit. Mai pulled up a chair, crossed her legs, and rested her head into her arms. "Here we go, another boring day doing another boring thing." She waited there for hours, looking over Azula's stationary form.

Azula woke up dazed with a blaring headache and touched her head. "Ouch! What the..." she took a look around the room, "What! Where am I? What's going on? Somebody help me! Help!" Her high-pitched scream rang throughout the room and surrounding halls. Mai covered her ears from the noise and twitched her eye. "Hey! Shut up, Azula. You're safe."  
"What? Who are you? What are you doing here?"  
"Ugh. Azula, if you won't bother remembering my name, then I don't know why I'm even here. I'd rather be wasting my time with all that political stuff Zuko's always shovin' down my throat. Don't even know why he still cares about you. You tried to kill him, hey, you even tried to kill me. So why am I here? So annoying."

"Hah!" Azula laughed, still unclear of her situation and who the random person was.  
"You laugh at that?" Mai reached over and pulled Azula's hair, pointing her face up to the ceiling. She then pressed a kunai knife against Azula's throat and kept it there as it drew a very small trace of blood. "Get this straight, you ugly tramp, the _only_ reason that I even _bothered_ to keep watch over your worthless body was because Zuko asked me to. He's still busy trying to keep order from all that crap your father pulled. I love him, Azula, the _only_ thing I love. And as much as I hate you and don't understand why he's doing this, I'd do anything for him. If you were in my hands, I would have killed you years ago. Try laughing at me again, I dare you."

Mai threw Azula back onto the bed and put away her kunai.  
"Why shouldn't I laugh, Mai?" Azula said with a demonic grin, "If Zuzu wants me alive, you can't kill me no matter what I say."  
Mai took out her knives and held each blade in between her fingers on both hands, threatening to use them. "What? You remember me, now?"

"Hardly, as if I could care, anyways. 'Mai,' 'Zuko,' it doesn't matter. Don't worry too much, though. If you keep spewing out garbage like that, it may actually trigger the rest of my memories." Azula gave a cackle which turned into a disturbing laughter. "Hah-ha-haha-hah! Whatever I did in my past life sure sounded like fun. I wonder how many I _did_ kill," Azula ended her sentence with her well-known and feared smile. Mai lowered her eyebrows in rage and threw one of her projectiles to the right of Azula's face. The razor edge slashed across her skin and severed any strand of hair that was in its path. The knife came to a halt as it punctured itself into the wooden door behind Azula.  
"Too many. Azula, you killed too many. I normally don't care about anyone except for myself and Zuko, but what you had done was just going too far."

Azula touched her bleeding cheek and brought her hand into view. "Oh, well what do you know? I'm bleeding. It has a nice feel to it, Mai. Warm and relaxing. How about I repay you the favor, hm? You'll thank me for it, it just feels so good." Before Azula could even lift a finger, Mai's shin made contact with her face, flying her across the room from the unexpected kick.

"I hate you, Azula. More than anyone or anything else. You've caused my Zuko so much pain over the years, and it took all that I had to accept his request to look after you today. I'm only here because he asked me, not because I ever wanted to. That's a warning in respect of our previous friendship. You try to kill him or anyone else again, I'll make sure that you won't enjoy the next time I make you bleed." Azula tried to pick herself back up, but fell down, face to the floor. She looked at Mai and started to cry from the undeserved attack. "Why did you do that? I didn't do anything..."

"You're a liar, Azula. Eventually, you'll relearn everything, there is no way that you could ever forget." While Azula was down, Mai knelt with her and pointed a dagger into the middle of her breasts. "If you try anything, or even touch my Zuko, I will plunge this blade into your heart and twist it until it can't bleed anymore. Understood?" Mai touched Azula with the dagger and waited for a response. "Well? Answer me."

"Zuzu's not going to like it if you kill me, you know," Azula said giving another grin, wiping the blood off her lips.  
"I'm not going to like it if you kill him. I can live with his unforgiveness, I can't live without him. I don't care what he thinks about you, he'd be better off with you dead."  
"Ha! _You'd_ be better off dead!" Azula was just about to say her name, when her mind froze up. "Who? Who are you again?" She said, a little frightened.  
"Don't play that game with me, Azula. It's annoying."

"Azula? Who's she? Is that you? I never heard that name before."  
"You've forgotten everything just like that? You're messed up, Azula. One sick soul."  
"No, I'm pretty healthy. I think? Am I?" Mai checked the clock on the wall and rolled her eyes. "Zuko should be back soon. I've had enough of you, Azula." She extracted the previously thrown knife out of the scratched wooden door and drove it into the floor inches away from Azula's hand. "I'm leaving. For all I care, you can take that weapon and just slice those wrists of yours. Bleed all over the floor and die, I couldn't care less."

Azula shook her head and discovered the blood still running down her cheek and mouth. "What? I'm bleeding? Why am I bleeding?" Mai slammed the door behind her and locked it back up.

Azula curled herself into a ball into the farthest corner of the room and never blinked, looking at the blood on her hands. "I'm bleeding... I'm bleeding... I'm bleeding... Why? Why am I bleeding?" She chanted, rocking back and forth, hugging her legs. She repeated those words to herself, their sounds growing louder after each breath and her fingernails digging deeper into the flesh of her thighs. She was about to scream, but another sound filled her ears and she looked around the room like a scared mouse-possum. "Miss Azula," the voice came from up above inside one of the ceiling rafters, "We have a proposal for you; your father would like to see you again."  
"My, my father?" _Yes, Azula. Remember? Fire Lord Ozai._

"Yes. We can help you, Azula. We can end your pain, restore your memories, and cease your bleeding."  
"Bleeding? Why? Why? Am I...?"

"WHY AM I BLEEDING?" Azula's voice shrieked from the other side of the door and was carried all throughout the entire floor. Mai's skin shivered from the sound as she met with the stairs down, and stopped walking, slanting her arm on the wall. "I'm sorry, Zuko, but I really don't like her. She almost killed you and I can never forgive that."


	10. Drastic Measures

**Chapter Nine: Drastic Measures**

"How many girlfriends have you had, Sokka?" Toph jested as the two ate their meal at _All Shades of Blue_, one of her favorite restaurants; one of the most expensive ones too. Toph never understood the name since she couldn't see any colors, but she heard that it was named after the sky and how its color always reflected off of the precious stones. She had faced Sokka the entire time, her face mirroring that of a love-struck high school girl. She was doing it on purpose, too. She could feel from Sokka's heart and body movements that it made him very uncomfortable and she adored it.

"Um, Toph? Could you please stop looking at me like that?"  
"Not a chance," she waved her hands in front of her eyes with a sarcastic smile.  
"You know what I meant, Toph. Seriously, could you stop? It's making me uncomfortable, here."  
"I know. I love it," Toph said, gleaming. "Hey, answer the question, Sokka. How many girlfriends have you had?" Toph asked again, only this time sounding more serious, like it was a life or death issue.

"Err, I'd rather not say, Toph..." Sokka replied, blushing and looking away from her eyes.  
"You'd better say!" Toph rose her voice, pounding the table.  
"Eep! I, err... Uh... Well..." Sokka said, trying to get his words and thoughts together.  
"Well?" Toph threatened.  
Sokka gulped and unbuttoned his collar. "More than one..." He managed to say.

"Well, at least you're not lying," she said, a little disappointed that Sokka wouldn't give her a straight answer. She never even thought about another man, how could he have just moved from girl to girl? What a player. Sokka took a deep breath, "Okay, Toph. I'll tell you. I've had four since Suki."

"Four?" Toph jumped, not liking his answer.  
"Hey, I can't help it. All the ladies love me, Toph. No one can withstand the good ol' Sokka charm."  
"Yeah, I bet..." Toph said under her breath.  
"Toph, can we not talk about this? I came all the way over here to see you. Cost me a lot of money."  
"What? I wasn't worth a train ticket?" She asked him, becoming highly agitated.  
"I had to pay for the boat, too! Plus, you wanted to come to this restaurant on our first date, that costs some money too." _Oh, crap! That came out wrong! Toph! Oh man..._

"Oh, so that's how it is, then. Everything's about the money, isn't it, Sokka? I didn't wait for you all this time to hear that, babe. You better watch your mouth, boy. I didn't fall in love with you to just hear you demean me and place a monetary cost on me. Meathead." _Watch **your** mouth, Toph, you just flat out said that you loved him. In the worst possible situation, too!_

Sokka could hear Toph mumble some curses and he placed his hand on her shoulder. "Toph, that definitely came out wrong."  
"You think?" She yelled at him, but then contradicted herself by moving her head up and down his outstretched arm. Sokka rubbed her face with his other hand and then twirled her into him, locking her at his chest. "Toph, forget what I said, that was stupid. There's no way I could ever place a price tag on you; not even if I worked nonstop 24/7. Not that I would," he said with a laugh.  
"Sokka..." Toph said, completely red in the face and unable to break free from his wondrous touch.  
"You're blushing, Toph," he said.  
"Yeah, I know..." she replied, without even fighting against him.  
"I still haven't given you that kiss you wanted five years ago. You still want it, right?"

"Yes..." _Yes? Don't be so subtle! You have him! You have him! Rock his world, Toph!_  
Sokka played with her hair and stroked her cheek. "Toph, I wanted this too, I was just too scared at the time. You're really intimidating, you know."  
Toph shook off her love daze and ran her fingers on Sokka's face cheek. "You better have some experience in this, Sokka. With all your four girlfriends." She moved closer to him, touching her nose with his. Her heart raced, this was the day she had longed for. Only a few more seconds and he'd... "Sokka, wait," she said, pulling back.

"What? Something wrong?"  
Toph put her finger on Sokka's lips and told him to hush. "Do you hear that, Sokka?"  
"You mean besides the beating of my heart?"

She was silent.

"Toph?"  
Toph's body tensed up and she spoke with a firm voice. "Sokka, get down."  
"What?"

"Get down!" Toph screamed and tackled Sokka, sending the both of them to the floor.  
"Toph! What's your deal? What's going on–"  
A giant boulder was hurled into the restaurant's wall and destroyed half the building, crushing many of the employees and guests under its weight and force. With many bodies either splattered or thrown, the scene was a violent massacre, and it was hard for Toph to make sense of it all. The images of outlined bodies and debris mixed with all the wailing and screaming, rendered Toph's Earthsight useless because so much confusion was going on and she couldn't get any solid vibrations. "What the hell just happened?" Toph said, checking herself for injuries. "Sokka, are you okay?"

No response.

Toph tapped on Sokka's head and felt relieved when she heard him grunt. "Rnghha," Sokka mumbled as he stood back up, "Toph, you hurt? Let me take a look at you." Sokka grabbed Toph's arm and she immediately pulled away. "Hey! What are you doing?" She cried out.  
"I'm trying to see if you're okay, Toph. I don't want my girl gettin' hurt."  
"What you say?" Toph asked him in disbelief.  
"I said that I'm making sure if my girl isn't hurt. Now shut up and hold still, I need to bandage your arm real quick." Sokka ripped a sleeve off his shirt and made a tight knot around Toph's arm as a temporary tourniquet. "Toph, you can't use this arm."  
"What do you mean? Of course I can! Ow! What? What the..." Toph's arm burned in pain.  
"Toph, your arm is broken, we need to get you out of here."  
"But what about the..."

"Toph! They're dead! I don't want you joining them! We're leaving, let's go!"  
"Sokka, I don't know what's going on, everything is so fuzzy! What's happening?"  
"Dead bodies are strewn all over the floors, Toph. Debris and rubble cover them, and the fires are growing larger. We gotta go." Sokka picked her up and she held tightly onto his neck as he ran as fast he could with an injured leg. "Sokka, I always pictured you carrying me across the threshold, not across the dead. And _not_ with a bad leg! What are you doing, you moron?"  
"What? You know?"  
"Sokka, your heart is racing and pumping like crazy, that leg of yours is really screwed over."  
"Yeah, but if you're safe, I don't care."  
"Oh crap, Sokka. Run," Toph said as her ears picked up another distant sound.

"What?"  
"Run! Run! Another one is coming you idiot! Run, run, run!"  
Even though his leg was in pain, he doubled his speed to the nearest unblocked exit, carrying Toph and panting all the way. "We're almost there, Toph. Only a few more steps, okay?"**  
BOOM! **The second boulder crashed into the restaurant's remains and separated the couple. Toph was thrown out of Sokka's hands and he fell to the floor, being crippled in pain. Toph's body traveled in the air and while she was still conscious before hitting the ground, she screamed out, "Sokka!"

* * *

"_We can help you, Azula. We can end your pain, restore your memories, and cease your bleeding." _Those were the words that the hidden figure told her, making her contemplate what he meant. What was this stuff about her father? What memories? She knew enough, right? Yeah, of course. Right. She didn't need to know anything else, why would she even want to? Still, the offer of ending her pain, that sounded wonderful. Maybe gaining back these so-called memories would help too, she didn't know. Didn't know? Well, maybe she _didn't_ know enough. Something about them seemed familiar, just like everything else that had been happening to her. Something was going on, she just wanted to know what it was.

Azula sat in her confined room, swaying back and forth. It wasn't the dungeon, but it wasn't paradise. One thing could be told, though, whoever put her in here and for whatever reason, really meant to take decent care of her; like somebody still loved her. _"I still love you, Azula. You're still my baby girl."_

Azula recalled that woman's voice and grunted, why did everything seem like she already knew it? If she already knew it, how come she didn't? The memories of yesterday filled her with both fear and excitement, the girl who assaulted her was very curious, she knew her as Mai, but didn't know why. Even that one person, that 'Zuko,' she knew him as well. Their relationship to her and the memories of them were so close to being renewed; so close that they wouldn't leave her mind, being looped over and over. Where were these guys, these people who claimed to help her regain her former status, whatever that was? "Help me," she said in a whisper, "Somebody please just help me."

One of the men placed in charge of Azula's care, unlocked the fortified gate and entered her room without any prior warning. Her once ragged clothing had been replaced by a newer, gentler prisoner's outfit, but it had suffered some tears from her struggle against Mai the previous day. Although the tanned clothing exposed very little skin, she pulled back and tripped over backwards on the small cot she was to use as a bed. "What, what do you want?" Azula asked, a little timid.

"Miss Azula, you've really ground yourself down. You don't know who you are, you do know who you are... You've messed yourself over quite nicely. All of this because of your failure six years ago." The man's voice was the same one she heard yesterday. That caught her attention and raised an eyebrow. "Failure?"  
"It's no surprise you've forgotten, Azula. You had it all, but you weren't able to grasp it. You weren't ready for it. Your brother Zuko took over your crown."  
"Zuko? My crown? What do you mean?"  
"Even though it was hardly any time at all, you were the Fire Lord. It's too late for you to go back to that now, but we can give you new life, like a Phoenix rising from the ashes."  
"Phoenix?" Azula asked, very skeptical and confused, shifting her eyes.

"Do you want to stay a failure?" The man asked, discrediting her question.  
Azula's head snapped back at the thought and her lips began to quiver. "No, I don't. I don't like that word. I don't like this. I don't like_any_ of this."  
"You don't?" He said, taking out a vial of liquid from his pocket. "How about this? Will you like this?"  
"What is it?" She asked, more curious about the alien liquid than her fear of the stranger.  
"It is a drug that will force your memories back. The Phoenix King wants you to take this medicine, but it could very well kill you. At best, it may even make you uncontrollable, daft, insane. Your choice. It's not like you'll get any better rotting in here."  
"My father...medicine...insane... I am **already** unstable! And that's all I know! Hit me, handsome. Give me all of that drug, let me swim in it. I don't care what happens after that."

"That's what we wanted to hear, Azula." The stranger tilted Azula's chin and slowly poured the drug into her mouth. She swished it around with her tongue and then swallowed, passing out almost instantly the moment it was consumed. "Good job, Azula. Let's get you out of here. If you can survive what you have just taken, you will be able to remember everything."

* * *

Sokka came back into consciousnees and felt the dried blood in his hair. With his vision blurred and everything spinning, his body would not allow him to stand. His injured leg now had an open wound with the blood both caked and flowing onto the skin. After trying to stand again, he fell onto his arms and face almost hit the ruined floor tiles. "Unh, how long was I out? What happened? Where am I?" As Sokka put his hand to his head in order to gain his thoughts, he could now see all the destruction that had taken place around him. Many bodies were thrown across the room, some even impaled by splintered beams. "What's... oh no! Toph! Where's Toph? Toph! Say something! Where are you?" He cried out, hoping that she was safe and not in any danger. He tried to stand once more, but his leg denied him the opportunity. Instead, he crawled on the floor, scraping his arms and knees on all of the shattered glass and debris.

"Sokka!" Toph's voice echoed 50 feet away from him, "Are you still here? Help me, I can't move, I don't know what's going on!"  
"Toph! I hear you, where are you?"  
"I don't know! Find me!"

Sokka crawled closer to where he thought Toph's voice was coming from and discovered that half of her was trapped under rubble. "Toph, I see you. You're pinned."  
"Yeah, I know," she replied with her usual sarcastic charm, "So get me out!"  
"Working on it, Toph. My leg is hurting like crazy!" Sokka took out his sword and used it as leverage as he pushed away the stones that had her trapped. He pulled her by her legs and dragged her out, creating a very slight blush on her face. "You okay, Toph? I used my sword to help you out," he rubbed his hand over her earring on its hilt, "Oh, did I ever tell you that I forged your earring into my sword?"

"Aww, Sokka, you kept your word! You said you'd never lose it! And, OUCH!" Toph stopped talking once her arm screamed out in pain, the broken bone had only gotten worse from the second crash and she couldn't even move it at this point. It hung loose on her shoulder, filling her with pain that she so much wanted to ignore. "Sokka," Toph said, with a tear, "I can't move my arm, it hurts so much."  
Sokka blinked his eyes a few times and rubbed his ears to make sure he understood what just happened. Toph would never admit that she was hurt, hardly admitted she was scared or cried, or anything. She was usually the last person to cave into anything. She was only human though, and no matter how strong she may be, she still had a limit. "Not cool. Well, so much for our first date, huh?" Sokka said with a smile and hand behind his head, trying to relieve the tense situation with his 'superb' humor. "Next time, I'm picking the place, okay Toph?"

_Wait, what?_ "Next time?" she asked confused.  
"Yeah, next time! I didn't come all the way over here to just say hi you know. I came here because..."_  
Say it, Sokka! Say it! _Toph silently told herself, hoping for what he was going to say.

"I came here because I love you. Took me all this time to figure that out, and all those other girls never took you away from my mind. I'm not leaving you anytime soon." The both of them still on the rocky floor, Sokka pulled Toph to his lips and gave her the kiss she had waited for the past five years.

_Woah! What's going on? Is this what a kiss feels like? It's... Oh, here we go! _The surprised Toph hadn't a clue how to react to Sokka's abrupt motion. She had never kissed anyone before, how could she? She never even cared all her life until she met Sokka. Since then, he was the only person on her mind and she could never figure out why he was even there. Now, that kiss that she had waited so long for was now being received, and it was nothing like she imagined. Her very first kiss, her very first love, just what was going on with her? She was changing, she was opening up; and it was all because of him. Toph made a pleasurable groan that she never thought she could make and engaged along with Sokka, wrapping her arms around his neck and touching his face.

Toph couldn't tell if her breath was taken away from the kiss or from her broken arm, but whatever it was, it happened all the same. The two stared in silence at each other, both knowing that what had just happened would last a lifetime and get even better down the road. They were soulmates, they belonged to each other; they had always belonged to each other. A piercing pain like a sword had just run through her arm crippled Toph and curled her up into a ball. "Sokka..."  
"Toph, I'm getting you out of here. It's not like you to act like this."  
Toph smiled, recalling that line he said so long ago, "Don't tell me how I act, Sokka."  
Sokka tore the other sleeve off his shirt and bandaged his leg, making a tight knot around the wound. "That'll have to do for now, I'm carrying you out of here."  
"No you're not! You're hurt, idiot!"

"Toph, be quiet. As if I'm gonna allow you to stay here, we're going." With sweat on his brow, he ignored his pain and cradled Toph inside his arms as he stood. "Heh, you're heavier than I thought."  
"What did you just say, Meathead?" Toph questioned him, giving him a stare cold as ice.  
"I, uh... I said you're prettier than I thought."  
"Liar, I heard you. Whatever, let's book."

With his girl in his arms, Sokka moved as best he could out of the restaurant and ran to the Bei Fong Estate. They were one of the wealthiest families in all of Gaoling, and they'd be able to fix Toph's arm. He didn't much care about his leg compared to what Toph had. Yeah, he wanted the stupid thing to stop throbbing and hurting, but his Toph was more important and he'd protect her. Always. "Sokka! Hurry! I can't see, you know. Do you even know where you're going?"  
"Toph, I told you to be quiet. You don't need to worry about anything. Once we get to your mansion, your family will take care of you. That destruction of the restaurant has everyone concerned, I'm sure they are wondering what happened to you."  
"Sokka, put me down. We're out of the rubble, you know. I can walk by myself."

"What? You don't like being in my arms?" Sokka said with a playful boast.  
"Baby, drop me or I'll mess up that other leg. You aren't allowed to be the only one to worry about the one he loves."

Defeated, Sokka gently put Toph down on her feet. A painful chill flowed up his spine and he immediately fell to his knee, hurting from the over-exerted leg. "See? You're hurt too, you big moron!" Toph scolded him, like they had already been married for 50 years. Silencing the screams of his pain inside his throat, he stood back up and continued to walk with a limp to the gates. "Toph, here we are."  
"Yeah, I know." Toph pushed open the gate and stopped in the middle of the front courtyard.

"Toph?" Sokka asked, worried if she was feeling alright.  
"Sokka, there's somebody here."  
"Yeah, I'd hope so! We need to get you checked out!"  
"No, Sokka, I mean I feel someone who doesn't belong."

"Toph!" Her mother and father both called out. She was about to run towards them when Sokka grabbed her good arm and halted her. "Toph, stay back. You're right, there is somebody here." He displayed his sword of jade and pointed it directly at the man who stood between the tied-up parents.

"Welcome home, Toph," said the armor-clad man, with a smirk on his face.


	11. Exiled Dreams

**Chapter Ten: Exiled Dreams**

"We've been looking for you, Toph. Surprised to still see you alive," the intimidating person said.  
Toph heard the man's voice and couldn't recognize it, angered by his spoken words. "I don't know who you are, I don't even care who you are! You tried to kill me!"  
"Yes, we did." The man took his sword and held the blade under both Poppy's and Lao's throats, seconds away from decapitation. "We can kill them too."  
"What?" Toph saw the movements and vibrations of the man with his long sword placed under a man and woman, each tied up separately. She could feel their hearts race, their emotions, their love. "Mom! Dad! I'll... I'll kill you if you try!"

Sokka stood beside her and even though with a damaged leg, he made a fearsome stance. "Yeah, and I'll help her do it."  
"Don't think that I can't see you, either. Drop your sword or this little blind girl is gonna knock you senseless."  
"Hah! What do you guys think you can do, hmm? You have a broken arm and your boyfriend over there can barely stand, I can even see the blood going through that bandage of his. It'd be best if you guys just gave up. You can't do anything, you can't even move or else I'll kill these two."

"Who says that I need to move?" Toph asked with a sly smile. The earth that stairs were built upon rumbled and under a second, a large pillar of stone came up from under the man and sent him flying towards Toph and Sokka. Once the man landed, Sokka picked him up by his hair and put his shining green sword under his throat. "There, now you're at the mercy of MY blade. Doesn't feel too good, now does it? Who are you and what do you want from us?"  
"This family is tagged, boy. You kill me, they'll die. Make one tiny slip of the hand and scrape my flesh, it'll be the last thing you'll ever do."

"Like I'm scared of you. I've had to take on the Fire Nation! Even survive after my mother was killed! There is nothing you can possibly do that will ever scare me." The blade drew closer to the man's skin until Toph told him to stop.  
"Sokka, don't. My family..."  
"Fine." Sokka lifted his sword. "Toph, can you trap this guy in earth for a few?"  
"Of course I can." Toph Bended the earth and columns rose from under the surface and bound the mysterious man in place. "Now, what do you want?" Toph commanded. While Toph held her focus on him, Sokka limped towards the captured parents and untied their knots. "Go somewhere safe, you don't know what this guy can do," Sokka told them.

"So, is your boyfriend that fearless, Toph? Does he really know what he's talking about?" the trapped enemy mocked.  
"He never knows what he's talking about. Kid's a walking pile of stupid most of the time. But when it gets right down to it, when everything matters, he transforms into a wondrous knight. He'll defend what he loves and his strategies never fail. _That's_ what I love about him you jerk, I can put up with all of his goofiness because I know that inside of him is someone that I can always depend on. You can't do a bloody thing, so just give up before one of us kills you."  
"Who's calling who stupid, girl? How do you think we got in here so easy?"  
"Wait, 'we?' Mom! Dad! Don't go in there!"

Too late. Sokka, Poppy, and Lao had all walked into the building and were met with swords.

* * *

Aang looked at the surrounding people who were in his house: Pakku, Kanna, and Hakoda. For the first time in what seemed along while because of the recent events, he actually felt determined; strong. Just because Yangchen killed someone lifetimes ago, didn't mean that he himself actually did it. She was his past life. His _past_ life. Nothing he ever did was done in murderous intent and even death seemed like the only option, he somehow managed to turn the situation around and spare the life. Thanks to Yangchen, he knew what was going on with Katara. It _was_ her fault that all of this was happening to him now, but it was pointless to dwell on that and to hate her for it. As much as he didn't want to admit it, he could understand Yangchen's point of view and after hearing her tell the tale, he knew that she still held regrets because of it. Even in death life still moved on, and just as friendships can last through the ages, enemies can also last through the ages, stalking and waiting.

Aang would have to enter into a world of demons, far from this planet. He wouldn't even be able to walk the streets of the living or be sheltered from previous times he had journeyed inside. This realm would be different, nothing like he had ever seen and he wasn't worried about that. He knew that if he could follow Katara's residual spirit energy and find her, then nothing would ever be able to take her away from him. If he died, then everything would be lost and he would have broken his promise to her, the one he had made so long ago proving to her just how much he loved her.

"_I love you, Katara. Like nothing I've ever known or ever could know. I want to wake up every morning and see you lying there right next to me, starting off the day looking into your beautiful eyes. I want to go to bed every evening knowing you are there, waiting for me to embrace you and dream together. To live every single moment of every single day with you until we both die from our old age. And even during those last days, when the years have taken their toll, I want to always, always, look at you and say to myself, 'I love that beautiful woman. She hasn't changed since the first day I laid eyes on her.' I want all of you all of the time, Katara. Tonight, there is nobody else. Every night there will be no one else, we're the only two people who exist on the entire planet and I want to see it all with you."_

Recalling that fantastic (in every use of the word) night, that promise he made to her still held true and not even this Shandar person could break it. It didn't matter if this guy was a demon, if he was already dead. As the Avatar, Aang had dealings with the supernatural on numerous occasions and even with some demons such as Koh, the Face Stealer. Aang was under control during all of those times, but this time would be different, would be unlike any other. He'd be in Shandar's home realm, the place his soul had been trapped for an eternity into. Just because the Avatar was the Bridge between both the paranormal and the living, didn't mean that he could understand all of it. Unlike the Earth, the Spirit World held no physical boundaries or any surpassable terrains. It was eternity, a strand of forever where time possessed no meaning at all. In there, the past, present, even future could possibly interact as one and the limitations no longer applied. For all he knew, Katara could be killed, revived, killed, and revived again. It wasn't like a spirit could be vaporized, even if her body was still present and still clung to life.

Whereas time held no importance in the Spirit World, it held all of the importance in the real one. Aang knew that if Katara was absent from her physical being for too long, then her body would reject its own soul since it had already been merged with the afterlife. A soul needs a body either in life or in death, and without one, it'd continue to search until it has finally been found. If the soul is unable to return to the living, then it would make its peace somewhere else and never breathe new life back into its original host. One day had already passed; one brutal, agonizing, heart-rending day. Katara was strong, he knew she was strong, she'd survive. She had _always_ survived. Nothing in this world or in the next would separate them from each other or from their love, and he knew that'd she cling on to the very last possible second until she was rescued. "Katara, you're never leaving my arms again. I won't let you, I won't let anything, I won't even let death change that fact. You're coming back to me, we still haven't seen all of this world just yet."

"Aang," Kanna said, "Bring her back, okay?"  
"I will."  
"Aang, my daughter is in your hands, just as she has always been. Don't you ever let go of her, you hear?" Hakoda told him, reassuring Aang of his strength and giving him a solid warning.  
"I won't."  
"She's a good girl, Aang. You'll never meet anyone like her and we all miss her. Save her or we'll never forgive you," Pakku said speaking for himself, but also mirroring some other feelings of the people in the city.

"I will bring her back. I will always keep her close. And you will never have to worry about me coming empty-handed. She is my love, my life, my everything. I will die for her so at the very least, if only one person returns, it will be her. Watch over my body, it can't be moved and I really don't know how long this will take. I won't be here. At all. I'll be in a completely different realm. I'll find her, I'll save her, I'll keep her. Stop doubting me, an Avatar's promise is his covenant." The tattoos on Aang's body glew bright, almost even blinding those around him with a fabulous blue and white shine. His eyes and mouth opened, all housing the encased light and with another brilliant flash that filled the entire room, everything suddenly stopped and Aang's peaceful yet glowing body was resting in place, his spirit leaving his body.

The next thing Aang saw was nothing but darkness and black swirls. The noise of which made Aang's head spin, all of the invisible sounds echoing like hundreds of swords clashing and scraping against gongs. When the cacophony ended, Aang found himself positioned onto a burnt surface, with all the terrain surroundings filled with black ash and dead, broken trees. When he had released his spirit, he had no clue where to go or even where to start, and it was like that he had been 'guided' here, like something or someone wanted him to arrive at this very location. As he thought about it, that did make a little sense because his spiritual form was floating and free-falling in the midst of darkened chaos until he touched down here; he had no control over it whatsoever. He couldn't feel Katara at all, if he was indeed led here, then where was her presence? "Katara, tell me where you are. I'm not leaving until I find you and bring you back."

"_**Katara? Who is she? Avatar, you have no reason to invade my home. Why are you even here?" **_An ominous evil voice thundered, making Aang's eyes shift back and forth trying to locate the sound. "Who are you? Why did you bring me here if you don't want me here?" Aang questioned the disembodied voice, showing no signs of fear.

"_**I can do whatever I want, creature. I am master here. You venture into the world of demons and violate my small part of this enormous plain. Whatever your reasons, whatever you search for, it is all meaningless. The souls who come into this dark hell will only suffer; every day until they die. And then they die again. They are forever locked into a dominating and bloodthirsty loop, there is no escape. This person that you look for, however important she may be, her fate is sealed. Accept it and return to your own world with a saddened and broken heart."**_

"I refuse," Aang said with determination and power.

"_**Do you, now? What makes you think that I am wrong? Avatar or not, boy, few who come here will ever return. It matters not if you are the Bridge or whatever power you hold, it all amounts to nothing here. The demons are under no law to listen to you, and you are the 'guest' in this tumultuous place. If you choose to stay, you must make another decision: abandon everything you have or weep for everything you have lost."**_

"I will do neither. Tell me your Name, demon. I _will_ command you, and you _will_ tell me where my wife is. I came here to get her back, and I will defeat anything great or small that chooses to stand in my way. As you can see, I am fully intuned to the Spirit World and as such, the limitations on my Bending no longer apply as they would if I had only come half-way. I did not come as a partial being to reconcile with anyone, I came full-force to bring back the one I love. You will show her to me or get out of my way."

"_**My Name, Avatar? Why should I give you my Name? Why should I tell you where your Katara is? Why am I even letting you live?" **_The still unseen voice now formed itself into a grotesque display of twisted limbs, attached onto a transfigured and horrible face. The demon's form was that of a human, but all its appendages were spread apart and stretched, also revealing some bone and organs from inside the burnt skin. **_"Here I am, Aang,"_** The creature said with elongated and broken fangs oozing and dripping with saliva. He (if it even was a 'he') warped instantly to the front of Aang's face and gave a nightmarish smile. _**"You have no command over me, pathetic wretch."**_

Aang pulled back his right arm and let a powerful Airbended punch make contact with the demon's face. The aberration crashed into one of the distorted trees and then just vanished into the air. "Your Name, demon. I know you're still here. Stop wasting my time. Where is Katara and what do you know? I will break you if you don't answer." Aang lifted his hand into the air and made a slashing movement, revealing the demon's location. The earth under 'his' feet Bended and impaled the stomach with a very sharp rocky point. "You're already dead, I have no qualms with beating it out of you," Aang said, losing control of his temper and allowing the dark energies around him seep into his soul; causing his emotions to get the better of him and cloud his judgement. His fist was inflamed and he held it dangerously close to the creature's mutilated face. "I'm waiting."

The angered spirit could not move his lower body but he extended his jaws and broke the skin of Aang's hand, trying to dig into the bone before the hand was pulled away. _**"I have nothing to say to you, do whatever you please."**_

Enraged even farther, the evil atmosphere spread more throughout Aang's spirit. His emotions, anger, frustrations, and any other possible human feeling swarmed inside his head and grafted themselves onto the evil presence outside. "You will tell me," Aang demanded, his voice booming with a deep echo as the Avatar State engulfed his being, "Or else I'm going to... I'm going to..."

"_I'm going to kill you, I have to."_

The shockwave of Aang's tremendous power actually made the demon cower in fear for the first time ever. It was a strange feeling, an unknown feeling. What was going to happen after this? What could he do? He felt so much pressure, his wounds growing deeper and deeper. Besides all of this, he was still winning, the Avatar was losing himself inside the world of demons and the constant barrage of malice streaming in the air had now found their way into Aang's skin and seeped to his very core. It wouldn't be much longer until he'd...  
"Tell me, I grow tired of your idiocy. Last warning. If you don't tell me what I want to know I'm going to–"

"_I'm going to kill you, I have to."_

"_**Exile."**_  
"Excuse me?" Aang said, his flaming fist now under the demon's chin.  
"_**My Name is Exile. Those who encounter me never return. You want to kill me? That's what you're thinking, isn't it? I can hear your thoughts, Avatar, even your mind isn't safe in this realm. Do it, abandon everything you have learned, everything you have held dear, abandon it all. Exile your dreams, your hopes, your very morality. See what happens when you succeed and place me into a second death, I am immortal."**_

"_I'm going to kill you, I have to."_

"No!" Aang screamed, jumping away from the named Exile and holding onto his head. "Get out of my head, I won't allow you to corrupt my mind!" Aang fought against the evil influence invading his soul and perverting his innocent thoughts. The anger and sadness from what happened to Katara and all the emotions that followed were extremely hard to let go, and the darkness around him refused him any glimmer of hope. He was falling victim to this world's spell and he'd have to suffer through the pain unless if he was able to abandon his feelings yet once again. Like a sudden jolt of electricity had just been shot through Aang's spine, he froze in place and let his arms fall to his sides. The tattooed arrows on Aang's body dimmed and the earthen spike that held his enemy in place retracted back into the ground, allowing the demon to fall to his face.

"You will not possess me, you will not throw me into Exile. I will hold firm onto Katara and you will tell me where she is." Aang clapped his hands together and the arrows on his body shone with a brilliance beyond words. The Avatars of the past encircled the morbid creature and all spoke with one voice, "Where is Katara?" The voices echoed deep, cutting straight into the demon's core. All their eyes were glowing bright, piercing his own with their blue color. He could feel the anger within Aang's soul, but this time that anger was kept under control and there was nothing he could do to twist it. They repeated the question again and the invisible force of their words pushed him onto the scorched soil, forming a small hole underneath his body. Aang took one step forward and pointed his finger towards the tormented demon. "Where is my wife?" The Avatars behind him all echoed with, "Where is Katara?" With another look into Aang's leering eyes, the disgusting beast finally caved.

"_**Enough, Avatar. It is obvious that you reign supreme. I will tell you where she is, but I've already cursed your spirit. You are now and forever will be in Exile, just like me. There is nothing you can do to escape this fate, and the one you love doesn't have much time until she is as well."**_

The Avatars of Aang's previous lives vanished and the arrows on Aang's body returned back to normal. With a stern look and conquering voice, he said, "You don't seem to get it. I promised her that I'd protect her, so that means that she will return. She will not be held in Exile to this evil domain, and neither will I. Even if what you say is true, Katara will survive and I will still rescue her even if I can never see her again. Exile or not, you will tell me where she is. Your threats are meaningless to me."

"_**Very well, if it is your wish to suffer through all eternity. I will tell you where she is."**_


	12. Never Alone

**Chapter Eleven: Never Alone**

"_**...I know where Katara is..."**_

Those words echoed in Aang's mind, always picturing that hideous face behind their sound. What had happened back then was nothing like he had ever experienced; the pure hatred, pure rage, impure thoughts. For the span of at least 2 minutes, Aang _actually_ wanted to kill him. Wait, no. The 'real' Aang had no desire to do such a thing, but this demon's void had found a way to twist his very thoughts and emotions into something evil, something that was the extreme opposite of himself. The past event was frightening, even bone-chilling. He didn't know if part of him truly wanted to do that or if it was merely the strong influence around him, implanting darkness into his soul that had never existed before. Well, 'merely' was hardly the word for it. The prevailing force behind it was electrifying, and the strange thing was that it was both good and bad at the same time. It flowed through his body, feeling like it tearing him apart and burning his insides, and through all of that, it felt like he wanted more. More of that pain that made him want to eject it onto his enemies and give him total rule, overriding anything that anyone could ever do.

This world was nothing like he had visited before, and it was just so wrong. He was thankful that he was able to escape from that monstrous transformation that was forced upon him and he had been aware of it ever since. Because his emotions were in such an erratic state before he even crossed over into the realm, the evil that resided here took advantage of his confusion and turned it into something unbearable, something that would literally destroy him if he continued along that path. His emotions had sometimes got him into trouble before, especially his anger. For such a peaceful man, his anger had always been a very scary thing. One time, his only salvation was when Katara embraced him with such a warm and loving grasp with heartbreaking tears in her eyes. At that sight, Aang released his Avatar State and calmed himself down; even though the capture of his best friend, Appa, had been too much. He was in shambles during those days, angry at everyone, including her. There were other times, as well. More _recent_ times, at that.

The last he could recall was about two years ago, one year before their marriage. He didn't yell at Katara, ever since that episode with Appa, he vowed to never do that again, but that didn't stop him from getting angry at others; especially those who would even dare to hurt his soon-to-be bride. There were still plenty of rebels in the Fire Nation Capitol, as well as the other Nations. During one of those fights, Katara was surrounded by both fire and earth Benders and even though her skill was extraordinary, she had definitely hit her limit. With only one sudden blast of air, Aang knocked all of them back in the Avatar State and nearly incapacitated them all. His eyes met with the first attacker he could find and the two were locked into a stare-down, his enemy being afraid beyond measure. The moment Katara told Aang to stop, he came back to normal and exhausted the emotion. In the Avatar State, he had the power of all the previous Avatars and that sometimes allowed their past experiences and past methods come into battle. Even though he could command the State, it was still hard to control, the intense flow of power, and almost being untouchable.

Through these memories, he was brought back to the time where he had to learn how to let go of them, the hardest thing he ever had to do. It seemed that the same thing applied here, if he allowed his emotions for Katara to overpower him in this world, then the world would overpower him. That demon, the one who had called himself 'Exile,' possessed some truth to his words. If Aang couldn't find Katara, they'd both be trapped here for an eternity, and even if he could find her, there was no guarantee that he'd not fall into the darkness around him. Maybe even Katara had already felt it, maybe she was already there. He didn't know, and the information he literally beat out of that demon wasn't much of a help even though it was most definitely something.

"_**I know where your Katara is. She's somewhere that you'll never be able to find, where the one called Shandar resides. It doesn't matter. Even if you do find her, you're forever trapped in my Exile. You've seen my face and it has bound you to this dimension. Abandon everything, Avatar. There is no hope or salvation for you."**_

"You're right," Aang told himself, "It doesn't matter. I made a promise to protect her, so I will bring her back. It doesn't matter what you say, I'll never believe it." Aang had already assumed that Katara would be with Shandar or at least fairly close to him, and that assumption was confirmed. As much as he tried, he couldn't even feel the slightest hint of Katara's spirit, and time was running out. Like he did before, Aang tried to summon the spirits of all the late Avatars in order to help him with his quest. They appeared so easily back then, in the middle of that Exile. They would know, or at least they would grant him power. His calls went unanswered this time, and his body felt weak. It was true that he was stronger in the Spirit World, where all energy could be found, but this dark and tormented place had its own way of leeching it all away. Although he was stronger, his actions also took a greater toll on his body since his spirit was closely connected to the dead. Everything he did here would also affect his physical self back in the world of the living. In his anger at the time, all the Avatars past came out of him and he could now feel the punishment from such an ill-thought demonstration. If he tried that again, or at the very least, any time soon, he wouldn't be able to survive.

There was something else about this place, as well. Aang knew that if Shandar had taken his wife captive, he would also probably expect him to travel into his world. Perhaps that Shandar had pre-conditioned everything and Aang was now feeling the results. This Shandar guy had hundreds of years to plan out his revenge, and he probably had no distractions to sway him from it. With every step that Aang took, it honestly felt like something was choking the life out of him, the invisible clutch tightening after every other step. Still, the odd thing was, even though he felt this way, he was able to continue on. Like his neck only needed one more tiny push for it to snap, but he still carried forward. His breathing was very heavy indeed, and each time he tried to stop, each time he _wanted_ to stop, his legs wouldn't let him. By chance, it could have been his determination, and even though he wanted to find her as soon as he could, it felt like something else. It was possible that somebody or something was actually pulling him along, maybe using an unseen string tied around him somewhere.

If his feet could bleed in spirit form, they definitely would have by now. With every grueling step, he felt like he was going to break apart, leaving nothing but an immobile torso. "K-Ka-tah-raa..." Aang stuttered as he fell to his knees, buckling from the immense weight. "I want-to-find-you... Where are you?"

"_Aang..."_

A soft voice was heard, causing his head to turn. "Katara?"

"_Aang... What I wanted... Was for you to save me..."_

"Katara! Where are you?" Aang shouted into the distance, his words traveling in all 360º.

"_Why didn't you save me, Aang? It's all your fault. I thought that you loved me. I should have never met you, you're so disgusting promising me something that you couldn't keep. You'll protect me? You'll **protect** me? You're such a liar, Aang. I hate you..."_

Aang shed a crystal tear from those words and his speech was broken and raspy. Was this really Katara's voice? No, it couldn't be. She would never say something like that to him, she loved him more than anything and he loved her even more. She knew that, they both knew that. This land had been demoralizing him since he entered, and it had to be because of the atmosphere. He knew Katara better than anyone else besides her brother, but he also knew her in many ways that her brother could not. There was nobody like her on the entire planet, and he couldn't picture any other girl on the entire planet. She was it, she was the one he'd spend the rest of his life with, and he knew that from day one, from the very first time their eyes met.

Those words were the same just as in that frightful dream right before any of this happened. He _still_ couldn't get that grisly picture out of his sight, no matter how hard he tried. It was his conviction, his resolve. He'd bear with that pain in order to press himself forward and find her, not even hell itself would keep her. Even though the voice was unlocated, Aang looked into the 'sky' and clenched both his fists. "You're not Katara, my girl would never say such a thing. I know it's you, Shandar. You can't break me so easily. Show yourself, I'll teach you what happens when you make an Avatar angry."

"_Are you sure, Aang? You don't know me?" _The voice said again.

"No. I don't."

"_Baby, you're making me sad. How can you say that? After all we've been through? After all I've given you? How could you even forget me? I'm your––"_

"No you're not," Aang interrupted, "Katara is my wife. You are just Shandar's twisted voice, so just shut up. You can't persuade me into thinking any differently, it's pointless."

"**Is it, now?"** Shandar's voice exploded.  
"You heard me, get it through your head. Give her back, I will find you both. Wherever you are."  
"**I disagree. Remember what your new friend said? You're in Exile. I placed him there just for you, aren't I nice? You can spend the rest of your life here, with her."**  
"I refuse. You can hear my thoughts, right? I know that they aren't even safe here. Read them all you want, put a magnifying lens on them, even. You will find that I am determined to bring her back, that I love her and that she loves me. I don't care what power or command you have over here, I will find a way to defeat you and keep that oath I made with my gorgeous bride."

"**Yes, indeed. I can see them, Avatar. I can see something else, as well. It's buried deep within the farthest corners of your mind, trying to block them from me. You're scared. Terrified, in fact. You're afraid that you will not find her, that you will not survive here, that she will not survive here. You'll never find her if you're that scared, Aang. Either way I win, but try a bit harder, will you? It's going to be so boring waiting all this time for you and ending everything in such an anti-climatic way. It'll be just as boring as that Sangmu. She couldn't even last 5 minutes against me."**

He was right, and Aang hated to admit it. This whole time Aang had pursued her with full tenacity, but those dreams were always invading his head. He was not almighty, Avatar or not. he _did_ know that there was always a chance that she'd be lost forever, despite what he told her and what he believed. It was only a tiny sliver of doubt, but it was more than enough for Shandar to take and warp it. It really was true, as much as Aang tried to deny it, and this world had been slowly eating him, digesting through the layers of his mind to this very source. It was true, it was all true, and Shandar knew it. He also knew something else, and Aang smiled at the thought, knowing that Shandar was doing his best to ignore it and focus on Aang's own small fear.

"One percent of me may in fact be afraid, Shandar, but the other 99 has sworn by blood that I'll rescue her. You have no idea what you've put me through this past month, what I've felt through that time. Every bloody tear and sweat drop that came out of my body was a covenant to Katara, silently telling her that I didn't want her to go through the pain I just experienced. The most wrenching part of it wasn't the visions themselves, but my thoughts of her. I could see her weep in horrible anguish through the nights, Shandar. How she desperately longed for my hurt to fade away, to never return. It was never spoken, but I told her that even though I had been going through this, she would never have to worry about it, that I'd be fine and well and that she'd be safe, just as she always had been. She knows that I care for her, she knows that I will find her and I know..."

Aang released the tight hold on his palms and pointed his right index finger into the surrounding void, ready to state his message. "I know that she will survive! We still have time, and even if only minutes were left before it all came crashing down and there was no hope for either one of us, I'd still find her and we'd still escape. I am getting closer every hour, every minute, every second. There is nothing in this world or in any other that will allow you to keep her away from me!"

"**How can you possibly say that, you fool? You take a look around, lately? You're all alone. You're in my Kingdom. I am ruler here, you're at my nonexistant mercy. You will fail, you will die, you will be tormented for all eternity."**

"Huh? Did you just say something, Shandar? I honestly wasn't listening. Alone? Failure? Kingdom? As if those words mean anything to me. I will never fail because I am never alone. Katara is always with me, no matter how far she may be, even if I cannot feel her. My love for her will never go away, and I will never stop feeling that. Your Kingdom has no rule over us, no chance of success. You can't ever break our soulbound hearts and I won't give up. I will never... NEVER fail _because_ I have her, and _because_ we are forever locked into each other's arms. She is always by my side; even when I can't see her, and she is always guiding me home, waiting for my return. I will save her, I will bring her back, and you will never disturb us again."

"**Love? I believed in love, Avatar. It allowed me to gain this power, but nobody could understand it. I was right, I know I was right, but I still had to die. Yangchen couldn't care less about me, that is why she killed me. She was never my friend. You have me wondering now, Airbender. I wonder just how long your 'love' will last and how long it will take for your precious girl to eventually turn on you and stab you through that broken heart. You're living a fantasy, Aang. Just let her die and be on your way."**

"Stupid. Such a stupid idea. I can't forsake her when she's showing me the way. I know that it's her leading me, not anybody else. Sure, there are obstacles and confusion all over this place, but I'll press on. Nothing can stop me. I will continue to walk and find her."

"**Continue? What will you do if your legs fail you, hm? Keep in mind that even your spiritual body has its limits in my domain."**

"If my legs fail? So what if they do? If my feet break off, I'll go along on my knees. If my knees are destroyed, I'll crawl with my arms. If those are lost, I'll inch forward with my chin. If my head is severed, I'll follow her with my thoughts."

"**And what if I obliterate your very existence?"**

"You can't. I'll live on inside Katara's mind and even there, I will never, ever leave her. I love her and I will die for her. As many times as it would take."

"**Then do it. Get yourself killed, sounds like fun. See if you can truly survive this plain without putting your physical body in danger. I'll kill her many times over, Avatar. The moment she can't return to her body, she is mine forever. You have a very cute wife, Aang. I think that I'll enjoy her very much, killing her many times a day. Everyday. Life and death are absolutely meaningless here. I'll even let you watch."**

Aang blasted a giant fireball into the air, voicing his anger at how Shandar would just so casually talk about doing such evil things. After that, Shandar wasn't heard and everything was now silent except for the continual vacuum sound of the void. Aang had time, he didn't have much, but it was still there. He would find his Katara, he had no doubt of that now. No fear left inside of him whatsoever, it was possible, it was final. He'd see her beautiful face yet once again.

"I'm never alone..."


	13. Bleeding Heart

**Chapter Twelve: Bleeding Heart**

Aang wished that his feet would only stop for a brief second, he was becoming exhausted and this was not a place he wanted to faint in. He forced himself to stop, nearly falling over from the sudden change of pace. His feet were aching him, he could only imagine how his earthly body felt. He dropped to the gray and dark blue surface, panting like a tiger-wolf who had been out in the sun for too long. He was glad that spirits needed no food or drink, but it would be nice if he had some right about now. He didn't want to rest, he hated that he had to rest, but it was either this or burning out. How much time was left, anyways? Time held no meaning here and it was impossible to determine how much had passed. For all he knew, a mere second could have been a day, and maybe a day a second. He had been here too long as it was, the only thing that kept him moving was his love for Katara and the intense drive to keep it aflame. His faith in their intimacy and the belief that it would never leave forced him to never give up.

Intimacy goes well beyond only touch, as Aang had learned. Their nights spent together were always passionate, and the most intimate thing anyone could do physically. That was it, _physically._ Emotionally, spiritually, and every other dimension of love was displayed among the two, and there were no words to even begin to describe it. Just looking into each other's eyes made them feel like they were in heaven, from all the goofy romance stories. The whisper of a 'hello' sent chills up his spine, energized by only hearing her voice. Even her smile took his breath away, every single time. She must have felt the same way, gazing into his own eyes and hearing him laugh. Watching him from day to day feeding Appa, playing with the children of the city, just anything he did. It was all eloquent, and his love was just so pure. She found it hard to believe that she would spend the rest of her life with this man, and how wonderful it would be. Aang felt the same, unbelieving that such a goddess would willingly fall into his arms. Their love was so real, so magnificent, so sickening if it were to be told in a story book or any other place outside of reality. Truly a love for the ages, not too many felt the way they did.

"Legs, sorry guys, but we need to keep moving on." Aang stood to his feet once more, and jumped into the air. He would take advantage of this spiritual world and fly his body to where Katara was. He hadn't been able to fly before, with his legs constantly moving and disobeying his commands telling them to stop. He felt that Katara was leading those legs, but she had to have been limited, and Shandar was the one who probably made him come to such an exhaustive state. His flight was now extremely fast, passing everything that wasn't of concern. The demon world stretched on and on, longer than what Aang originally thought it would. He'd been in the Spirit World many times before, so he knew it wasn't all gloomy, but all he had seen since he arrived was despair. The sooner he was out of here, the better, and the sooner she was in his arms, the greater. The blurred objects in the distance and those left behind seemed to all merge together, clouding Aang's field of vision and making everything seem like white, fuzzy walls. He was traveling this way for miles and miles, if this world even had miles. Whatever the distance, he was literally flying blind and only hoping that his heart was leading him in the right direction.

Out of nowhere, Aang slammed into a solid surface masked within the white space and at once, everything became quite clear. "Agh! Where am I?" He asked, floating to the ground and looking at something that wasn't there, finding it hard to believe that he crashed into nothing. "I had to have hit something... What in the world..."

The walls closed in around him, boxing him into a small square, denying him a lot of his movement. "Hey! Let me out!" He demanded, squirming about trying to break free. He moved around some more until the enclosed space finally widened and dropped him to the lower square. While still on his hands and knees from the fall, charred and bony hands held him in place, casting some type of impairment on him. "Hey!" Aang repeated his words, but the pure-white box only closed in, now with all four walls touching all four sides of his body. Aang did his best to unbind himself, but a chilling voice echoing from the outside stopped him dead in his tracks.

"What are you doing, Aang? Where are you even going? You can't find her, you can't find anything."  
"Shandar! Show yourself! I'm going to beat the living crap out of you!"  
"_**Right, that's a good enough reason to show, isn't it? Besides, there's nothing 'living' in me, you'd have no luck with that at all. You're running out of time, Avatar. This is getting quite boring."**_

"Yeah, that'll change once I find my way out of this prison."  
"_**I disagree, Aang. Aang? Hmm, I just noticed. That name sounds an awful lot like something I've heard before. What was it, again?"**_ Although invisible to Aang's eyes, Shandar placed his hand under his chin and struck a dramatic thoughtful pose. A wide sinister grin came across his face as he pointed his finger up into the air.

"_**Ah, that's right. I remember now. It's just like Yangchen, and also Sangmu. No wonder why I hate you so much, Aang, your very name strikes malice into my heart."**_  
"You don't have a heart," Aang said, hinting frustration.

"_**I don't? Ooh, yeah. I don't. Yangchen thrusted her hand into it and made sure it stopped beating before she extracted her arm. It was a pretty painful death, Avatar, I wonder how it would make Katara feel. She's a beautiful young lady, isn't she? She'd make a lovely corpse. Oh, I think I'm falling in love with her dead body already, Aang. Wouldn't you agree? Someone this beautiful should stay that way for an eternity, she should grace you with such a lovely face the moment before she dies. Best to look at her wonderful form as it is instead of seeing her as an old hag, eh? That's what I think love is, Avatar. Something that is spectacular should never be wasted, never be allowed to change. It's amazing what I've learned, and it holds so much truth to it. Well?"**_

"You're a monster, Shandar," Aang replied, building up fire inside his body.  
"_**A monster? You make me sound so holy, Aang. I am a demon. And a damn good one."**_  
"I don't care _what_ you are. You will give me back my Katara or I will force her out of your hands."

"_**Force her? You can't even force yourself out of such a weak confinement. You are worthless. Useless. Powerless. I hate your very existence, Aang. Absolutely loathe and despise you. You are the last remaining Airbender, and I promised Yangchen I'd have my revenge. If I kill this girl, any chance of a new Airbender will be eradicated and your life force destroyed. Of course, the both of you are going to be trapped in here forever anyways, so let's have some fun."**_

Aang's spiritual form inflamed and burning with rage, the hands that bound him and the walls that surrounded were engulfed in fire, creating a massive spherical explosion and releasing him. The glowing arrows on Aang's body threatened violence and he wanted his love to come back to him.  
"Katara," he said, powerfully speaking the word.  
"_**Katara this, Katara that... Fine. You won't shut your mouth anyways. I'll show her to you. I'll show you just how much pain she will endure."**_

Literally out of thin-air, Shandar revealed himself to Aang for the very first time. Now he had a face to go along with his evil voice, and Aang was surprised to see what Shandar really looked like. He looked human, not an abomination like he originally thought. This man, this thing, radiated such an evil aura that even Aang could feel it outside of this murderous plain. His energy held tremendous pressure even now, but the face of this demon was that of a regular monk. Shandar noticed the confusion in Aang's eyes and sighed.

_**"What? Were you expecting someone else, Aang? Would you rather gaze into the eyes of a ravenous beast? I didn't know that you enjoy such morbid things, you keep surprising me."**_

Aang shook off his daze and shot a fireball at Shandar without any type of warning. Shandar stepped aside and easily dodged the attack and only shrugged his shoulders. _**"What was that? You're a weakling, Aang. A worthless fool who couldn't even defend the one he loves."**_  
"What do you mean, 'couldn't?' Didn't I tell you that I'd bring her back? And didn't I tell you..." Aang's voice transitioned into Yangchen's and that caused Shandar to step back. "Didn't I tell you that no matter how many lifetimes it would take, that I'd always be ready? That I'd never forgive you?" Her voice faded and Aang's returned, echoing in a righteous anger. "Get out of my way and get out of my life. I will make you regret all that you have done and force you into submission. One last chance, demon. Return her."

Shandar smiled and gave another shrug. _**"Yeah, okay. You win, Avatar. How can I not allow you to catch a glimpse of her face before she is immortalized as a perfect being?" **_He snapped his fingers and a chained and bruised Katara appeared. Her clothing was that of a gorgeous blue and white dress, just like the one she wore when she was wed. Her eyes were parched from tears and Aang could see the misery in her soul.  
"Katara!" He ran towards her, but Shandar pushed him back with some Bended air.

"_**Who said anything about you touching her, huh? Know your place, boy. I don't care who you are, she's in my house."**_ Shandar touched her chin and lifted her up to her feet. _**"Aang, remember when I asked you how you'd think of what happened if I cut into Katara's heart?"**_

"No! Drop her, now!"

"_**Drop her? Oh, ha! Yangchen told me the same thing as I held the severed head of her dear mentor. I don't know why she was so upset, Sangmu even smiled. Just like this." **_Shandar put his fingers into Katara's mouth and stretched a smile across her face. **_"See? She's perfectly fine, nothing to worry about at all. Ease up some, okay?"_** At that, Aang charged him for a second time and was pushed back even farther.

"_**What are you doing? I told you that she was fine, nothing to fear. I'm doing her a favor. Watch as I forever enshrine this beauty and keep her as the marvelous creature that she is."**_Shandar materialized some type of strange instrument, Aang couldn't tell, and it wasn't any form of Bending he'd seen, and then focused it into a very sharp and hard black weapon of death.

"SHANDAR!"

He ignored Aang, maybe he didn't even hear him, and drove the stake into Katara's heart with all his might. He twisted it and moved it around, eventually puncturing through her back like a javelin had just been thrown into her. Her screams of agony sounded so glorious, just as Shandar had wanted. Her body twitched all over in a very rapid movement until finally settling down to a halt, becoming as still as a log. Her last wail flowed into the void, echoing and triggering other words; her last thoughts of why Aang couldn't save her. Her body disappeared and Aang fell to his face, a pain that he had never felt swallowing him whole.

Shandar just watched as Aang writhed, bursts of screams and howls escaping his mouth. He let Aang go on like this for a short length of time before he spoke again. _**"Hey, what are you doing? I didn't kill her. Why are you being so dramatic?"**_  
Aang looked at him with acid tears and could barely talk from the horror. "W...ha...t?" He managed to say, still overcome with sorrow and unfathomable pain.  
"_**I can't believe you're hurting so much, Aang. Didn't I tell you that I'd immortalize her? If so, then why would she disappear? That'd be utterly pointless, I would never do such a thing."**_  
"Then...what..." Aang continued to speak, with broken and screeching words.  
"_**I just wanted to know how she would feel, Aang. Didn't you notice her blood spray onto my face and pour onto the ground? Spirits don't bleed, Aang. True, she isn't a full spirit just yet, but give me some credit why don't you?"**_

"You..."

"_**Aww, stop being such a baby! Here, I'll show her to you. I'll show all of them to you." **_With another snap of his fingers, hundreds of Kataras formed, each with the same black stake in their hands as Shandar's and each wearing the same outfit. His stomach still burning, Aang couldn't believe what he was seeing and it hurt even more. If he was able to vomit, he would have done so already, but this eternal body had no need for food, so no need to expel a thing. His physical body probably already had, the two were still connected, but he'd worry about the one he was in now. "Oooh, Aang, thank you for coming," Said one of the Kataras in a very seductive voice, closing in on him. Unable to move, he just stood there, at her full mercy. Her mouth locked onto his and her hands moved up and down his body. She felt so real, she felt so good, this... was this her? Was this...

"AHHAA!" Screamed the false Katara as another used the blade in her hands to rip through her heart. Her blood splashed onto Aang, dripping off of his hair and fingers. His hands quaked and eyes widened, dizzying images swarming inside his head. The one who 'killed' her took her own life as the blade pushed through her breast and exited out of her spine, blood spurting from the open wounds. Before falling down, she smiled at Aang and positioned herself onto the other Katara's body. Aang stood there in indescribable torment and fear. Not only did he just see Katara die, he saw her die twice. No, _three _times. He saw her get killed three times, and there was nothing he could do about it. There were hundreds and hundreds of other Kataras, all dressed the same and all with those daggers. They all just stood there, not saying a word, not moving a muscle. It was nerve-wracking, cutting into the very core of his soul. Then, they all started walking towards him like slow moving zombies and stopped before coming near his toes. They were more than an arm's length away, but close enough to see every detail in their faces.

They turned to one another and all smirked at the exact same time. They twirled the sharp daggers in sync with each other and pointed at their hearts. All their mouths opened and as they stood still, their heads turned towards Aang and spoke with one voice. "You were supposed to save me, Aang. Why? Why are you watching me die? Don't you love me anymore? My heart, Aang. My heart is in so much pain, I can't take it anymore. I don't want it anymore. I just want... I just want to..."

"Katara! No! Don't!" Aang shouted, racing his eyes across all of the figures standing before him. With a thunderous roar and an ugly bone-crunching sound, the daggers were thrusted into their hearts and their screams drowned Aang's ears. The vast field of bodies now laid still on the ground, their blood oozing and gushing to where Aang stood. It was _that_ dream again, the one where he couldn't do anything as he watched Katara's blood flow down to his feet. His quivering mouth was speechless, his mind was thoughtless. Again he had been splashed and covered with Katara's blood, and he was ready to break. He knew spirits couldn't bleed, but Katara was still human. She could very well die and bleed in this land, and so could he. As the Avatar, he was able to release his spirit when needed and find his way back into his body. Katara, as a normal person, didn't have that ability and she would need his help in order to find her way back. That is, if she was still alive. Perhaps the _real_ Katara was hidden inside that crowd of falsities, maybe he had been wrong all this time. Yeah, maybe there had never been any hope at all. The anguish he felt was so overpowering, he couldn't move, talk, even breathe. Why did he even come here for if she was going to die like this? Was this even real? They were all fake, right? "I... I don't know..." _Aang, _he heard himself think, _Calm down, Aang. You know this isn't real. You know that she's alright, that there's still time. You can do it, Aang. You can do it._

"I... I don't know..."  
"_Aang, baby, it's okay."_  
"K-Katara?"

"_Aang, I'm okay. Please take me back home."_


	14. Say That You Love Me

**Chapter Thirteen: Say That You Love Me**

"Have you forgotten your past, Azula? Have you forgotten everything?"  
"No, Father. I can remember it all," she replied with a sly smile.  
"Took you long enough," Ozai snapped, putting a sting into his words.  
"Don't lecture _me,_ we're _both_ failures here."  
"Your tongue is as sharp as ever I see. And yes, you are right, I've lost my Bending and you've lost your sanity. But my dear, we have gained something else as well."

"Oh, really?" Azula said, cocking her head, "And what is that?"  
"I won't tell you. I know that it was your plan to overthrow me once you became Firelord, I could see it in those burning hellish eyes. I won't let you know everything just yet."  
"Everything, huh? So I _don't_ know it all then," Azula said, twitching her eye in a slight hint of madness. "Very well, do whatever you like. It's nice to see that you actually want me around." She turned her back to Ozai as she started to walk out of the room.  
"Azula, wait," Ozai spoke out. She made a sudden stop and only turned her head, but with a smile.  
"Yes, Daddy?"

"I didn't take command of this tower of solitude for nothing. For years I had been trapped here as a prisoner, away from anyone and anything except for brash idiotic guards. My influence as the Phoenix King finally found its way inside here, and now all who reside in here are my servants. Many outside, as well. It took me a lifetime to gain this power, Azula. There are things even Bending cannot accomplish. Don't misjudge me or misunderstand me dear daughter, I need you, I really long for you to be my side. I am only waiting for the right time, you know? I gave you your memories back, I love you." Ozai bowed his head and under its shadow, formed a smirk on his face. Whether or not she believed him didn't matter, under control, this monster could be of use, and he'd play her and trick her into thinking that he really loved her. It was all going according to plan.

"You love me? Yeah, you always have. You've always loved me." Azula made a rare smile of happiness untwisted by malice, and breathed a sigh of relief and joy. Ozai also smiled, excited that his daughter was falling into his trap.  
"You're a good girl, Azula. Now get out of here, I have some planning to do with my faithful knights and pawns."  
"Okay!" Azula left the room and for what seemed like the very first time in her life, she was a child again. After everything she had gone through, all of her undeserved trials, they were finally paying off and she was finally feeling accepted. She literally skipped down the hall for a few steps until another reality set in and forced her to slap herself in the face. "He won't tell me..."

She Bended a tiny flame and extinguished it almost the instant it was created. How could he not trust her? His own daughter? She wasn't like Zuko, she wasn't a traitor. "Yes, Daddy doesn't like traitors." But then why even have her memories restored if he wasn't going to trust her? He trusted her, right? He said that he loved her, but was ever trust the same thing as love? She hadn't felt loved for so very long, maybe this was the way it was supposed to be. Did love really feel like this? And if it did, how come it still left her with many, many more questions? With that thought, she shook her head back and forth and cracked her fingers. "Get it together, girl. Of course Daddy loves you, why wouldn't he? He was able to help you, give you back your memories. Don't you remember?"

The medicine Azula took a few days ago was horrible, from what she could remember of it. She recalled the first time she awoke after being knocked unconscious from the drug; she was in a state of panic at that time, all bodies and objects around her spinning so fast, that they all became blurred. Colors melted into grays and reds, and sounds were heard as incoherent babbles and clangs. Azula held her head remembering all these things and felt a beating pain inside, taking her back once more to those past recent events.

She was screaming back then, horrors upon horrors of unknown hatred, despair, and violence. The whites of her eyes were dry and scaly, with tears still forming and caking onto her cheeks. Her throat was parched and raspy from the constant wailings, yet she still managed to voice sounds of horrible discontent. She was like this for hours, even days. Those long forgotten and forsaken memories kept forcing themselves back into place, all jumbled up in a blob of never ending confusion. At the time, she couldn't figure all those out, or know what was going on. Dialogues, explosions, fires, swords, and other blurred objects of her past dashed throughout her mind, crashing into one another. More hours passed and for the first time, some of those conversations became clear and audible; and one in particular. She talked to herself along with the memory, speaking her words aloud as the other party continued to speak in her head, her thoughts and feelings pouring into the conversation and twisting it into something untrue.

"_You don't remember me, Azula? I'm your mother. I'm Ursa."_  
"Urrssaahh..." She repeated, eyes dilating from the very name. "Mother? Who's that? What's that? Is that even real?"  
"_I'm real, dear. So real that you can touch me. Look at you, darling. You're in these chains, your face, your hair, even your skin is tarnished. What has happened to you? Don't you know that I still love you?" _Those words echoed.  
"Love me?"  
"_Yes, I've always loved you. Your father never did. He only loved your power."_

"No, that's not right..."

The conversation then became distorted and even more twisted, Azula's confusion and anger colliding into one feeling and feeding the never-spoken words.  
"_Of course it's right. Even though you're a failure. I still love you."_  
Failure. That word boomed and hit her forehead, dropping her to the floor. Did her mother actually say that? Or was it her? Either way, she hated that word.  
"_Yes, you could never do anything right. You were always in trouble and causing trouble. You wouldn't listen to anything I said, you weren't like Zuko at all. Still, I love you."_

Azula had no idea, but this false conversation caused by all her sorrow and torment, now sounded real, and was so easy to believe. "No, you never loved me. You left me. You left me for– Who was it? Somebody that I..."  
"_Daddy's gonna kill you, Zuzu!" _she heard her voice speak. "Zuko? Yeah, **him.** You only loved him, you never cared about me. I needed you."  
"_No, I love you. How could you forget that?"_  
"Well, I hate you. How could you forget about me for six years?"  
"_I did no such thing."_

"THEN WHY AM I HERE?" She screamed and was now cringing and wailing, thrashing and convulsing all over the floor. Her teeth were gnashing, sweat coming off her arms and forehead, running down every single standing hair on her unshaven skin.

After she had subsided, she wheezed and took many very deep breaths, opening and closing her right fist with each. All was silent now. No voices, no sounds, no visions, no anything. It was ghastly; part of her actually wanted the horrible cacophony to resound. It was so quiet, it was scary. With all this silence, she didn't know what would happen next and couldn't even figure out what was happening now. She could hear her own heart beat tremendously fast, eyes wavering along with each thump. Then her pace slowed, bringing her eyes to a close and ironically calming her nerves. When she next woke up, her head was still pounding, but she wasn't panicked any longer. She uttered a few curses under her breath in opposition to her pain and then tried to remember what happened and why she was even on the floor. Through that process, she recalled the events that made her wish that she was dead and looked at her dagger-scarred hands from her desperate 'escape' a little while back. "I remember. I know who put me here and made me like this."

Finally gathering all her thoughts together of the previous events, she shook her head again. "Stop reminiscing about that ugly past, Azula! Who wants to remember what happened once you took that drug? Everything is fine, now. Father loves me and I don't really care about anyone else." She walked the halls of this huge tower that used to be reserved as a holding place for her father.

Even though he had lost all of his Bending, the Fire Nation still perceived him as a dire threat and sent him to this place in the middle of the ocean so that he'd be far away from them. His influence as the previous Firelord and even as the Phoenix King, held strong, however. He had spent most of his life building his reputation and power, most of which without the use of Bending. Even though there were many who hated his existence after the thousands he had killed, there were still some who revered him. It was those select people that enabled him to rise back into power and strength, as much as he could possess at the time. Two main members of this group were originally part of the Dai Li and although Azula disbanded them, they honored the power and title of the Phoenix King. The others were citizens and soldiers who had remained loyal to him through everything.

With their help, he took control over this prison and killed those inside who fought against him. The group created were known as, "The Order of the Phoenix" soon after that. Ozai decided to remain in the tower and work as a shadow, making all the people believe that he was still imprisoned. The Order branched and through the years, all they ever did were small terrorist actions and rebellion outbreaks. One branch included the city of Gaoling. That city had been virtually untouched by the war given its geographical location and small size. The other Earthen Kingdoms were well fortified now and would be close to impossible to break through or even scratch. They had managed to sneak in a few members, but all that was ever accomplished were tiny rebellions that equaled the same as minor annoyances.

Gaoling was different in many ways, they had some success there, even though it had been small. If Ozai could take over that city, it'd be so much easier to conquer the greatest Nations on the planet through the inside. He wanted revenge. Revenge on the world, on his Nation, on the Avatar, on just about anybody so long as he could quench the bloodthirst that overpowered him throughout the years. He smiled when the news came that the Gaoling uprisings were successful and that they've now captured the Bei Fong household, one of the wealthiest and most influential families in the entire city. They were also acknowledged in both Ba Sing Se and Omashu. With their capture, he could accomplish many things that would otherwise be difficult.

Azula had not heard of this news and as she walked the halls to her temporary bedroom, she still hated that her father wouldn't tell her anything or even explain this group that she was now a part of. She exhaled and looked to the ceiling. "It doesn't matter, Daddy said that he loves me."

* * *

Toph grunted and squealed through the dirty rag her captors had stuffed into her mouth. Why'd it always have to be a _dirty_ rag in the first place? Couldn't they have at least given her a fresh cloth? Or even tape it? She was a Bei Fong, for crying out loud! How dare they treat someone like her this way! Didn't they even know who she was?

Yeah, that's why she was here. They knew _exactly_ who she was. It was all making sense now, sort of. Over the years she helped subdue the attacks and uprisings and now they were finally getting back at her, whoever 'they' were. She made a few more grunts and winces as the tight ropes burned her skin every single time she moved. They had her good, this time. Worse than any other time she was captured. That stupid wooden cage, those stupid ropes, that stupid gag, just all of it was stupid. Her whole body, as short as it may have been, was tied up from her shoulders all the way down to her toes. It was like she was trapped in a cocoon, itching and burning with every slight movement. She couldn't believe this was happening to her, nobody was allowed to touch her, why did she even get captured?

Well, _almost_ nobody. She'd allow Sokka to touch her all he wanted, because she wanted it. Sokka. He was part of the reason she was even here. How could he just drop his sword and give up like a lowly coward? So what if he was surrounded by four or five men? Who cared if they had swords? He could have killed them all with relative ease, she knew his skill and knew that he could. The moment he entered that door and was met with swords, he feared for her parents and thought it wise to surrender almost instantly. Wise? Wise? Since when _was_ he wise? That idiot had no idea what he was doing, it didn't make any sense that he'd just cower like a little baby. Sure, her parents' lives were at stake, but he could have defended them, right? Sokka's sword acted like another part of his body, and his skill was becoming legendary. She knew he could have killed those intruders, sliced their heads off within seconds. Just what was he even thinking? Now because of this stupid move, her parents were _still_ in danger and now she was tied up with hardly any chance of escape! He was right there, too. She couldn't see him and he was also gagged, but she knew that they had placed him inside a containment straight across from her, letting her know that even though he was still there, she'd never see him again.

"Toph, stop. It's not worth it," he told her, dropping his sword and wanting her to relinquish her battle-ready stance. She ignored him at first, not wanting to forgive the fool who dared attack her and her family. "Toph! Give up! Do you WANT them to kill you?"  
"Like that'd ever happen, you moron! Nobody holds power over my life!"  
"Babe! Would you please get your mind together? What about your family? This is beyond me, Toph. I don't want them to die! Any of you to die! I can't fight a losing battle if someone I love will be killed!"

Those around him seized Lao and Poppy once more and confiscated Sokka's sword, placing him under arrest as well. The man standing next to Toph, still trapped in her Bended earthen cage, smirked and spoke his mind. "You heard your boyfriend, girl. Your parents are at our mercy, we can force them to do anything. Maybe even force you to watch. Oh, wait. You're blind. Sorry. Nevermind, then. We all know that you won't do anything drastic while we have your loved ones in hand. Shoot, even your brave warrior boy over there gave up. Acknowledge defeat, cutes. You've got nothing." Toph dispelled the stone barrier and scowled at the man the best a blind girl could do. "Fine. Sokka, I'm going to kill you if they don't first. You have no idea what's going to happen to us, now! Thanks a lot, you Meathead!"

The released captive now turned the tables and tied Toph's hands and arms, ignoring the fact that one of them was already broken. The pain dropped her to her knees, and she shed a single tear because of her shameful defeat. "Sokka!"  
"Toph, I don't care," he said as they began to drag him out of the house, "Think what you will, but I refuse to let them kill you or anyone you know. I don't know what's going to happen, but anything is better than losing you now. Hate me, hurt me, I don't care. I love you, so I'm doing the only thing I can think of to protect you. Whatever happens next, we're getting out of this."

"No! You're not thinking at all, Sokka! You never do! This is on you! If they kill Mom and Dad, I'll make sure that they won't have the honor in doing the same to you, I will! I–" Toph was knocked out before she could finish her rant and the next thing she knew when she woke up was that she was now here in this cell. Her bindings hurt her broken arm and one could only know what damage had been done to it already.

"Because you love me, eh?" Toph thought to herself, despite the wretched piece in her mouth distracting some of her words, "If that's true, you should have defended me then. I don't know what you're doing. That's not my thing, I never give up. I don't look at the odds. You better be right, love. I won't ever forgive you if you're wrong." She could hear Sokka shuffle around in his own cell and heard many inaudible sounds trying to escape from the rag in his mouth. What was he saying? Was he saying that he was sorry? He _should_ be sorry. Half of this was his fault, after all. She made a muffled roar and then turned her back to him in protest.

Sokka, gagged and bound the same way, looked across his wooden cage and banged his head up against the wall a few times, more or less keeping his focus on Toph. This wasn't cool, he could see her, but she was literally blind in this place, and those ropes around her were much tighter than the ones around him. Not to say that he could easily slip out of his, he had no chance of that. At least his own bindings didn't rip his flesh every time he moved. With every inch Toph made, he could hear her and see small trickles of blood. He didn't even know what was going on with that arm of hers, nevermind the searing pain in his leg. She probably hated him right about now, trying to figure out his reasoning and placing the blame on him for why they were here. She probably deserved to think that way, too. He knew that she'd hate giving up so easily without much of a fight. True his skill with the sword was superb, but there was no way he could have defeated the five men around him plus many more who would come after, while defending Poppy and Lao. His mind was clouded with their safety as well as Toph's and he couldn't fight like that, even if he could defend her parents from those men, more would show. There was no possible way that they were the rest of this guy's force.

If he was by himself or even if it was just him and Toph without any worry of innocent blood being shed, he could have won, and Toph knew it, too. With his sword and his expertise, five men meant absolutely nothing to him. He could have had their heads in no time, but that obviously wasn't the case. His warrior instinct almost made him commit a monstrous mistake, and he had to subdue it the best he could, which he almost didn't pull off. He knew that the moment he'd let his sword fly, the two he was supposed to protect and defend would lose their lives. He wouldn't be able to take out _all_ those men in one swing. Maybe two at most. That left the other three and although they wouldn't last too long against him, that'd give them enough time to end the lives of his girl's family. Besides, even if he was able to protect them from those men and from the ones oncoming, there was no promise that Toph would be fine by herself. Yeah, sure she was a tough girl, and a really good looking one at that, but her arm had to have been broken and he knew that as much as she had managed to mask the pain, it was really starting to wear on her. There was a very good chance that she could have died as well. Or maybe she would have stayed alive, but he had no Bending skills. He knew his limits, regardless of what he wanted to do. That's why he dropped his sword, it was the only way he could think of to resolve the matter, even though they were now placed into a position he didn't much care for.

It was situations like these that he wished he could attempt some of his amazing humor, but all he could do was think of jokes to himself, he could barely even move. The jokes sounded funny in his head, they were his after all, but they always seemed to have a greater impact when told to someone else. Especially Toph, even though she would always punch him for them. All his other girlfriends never really liked his humor, though. They always moaned in annoyance everytime he tried it. At least Toph would listen before beating him up, the other girls didn't want to hear it after a while. He laughed to himself because he was thinking about all the previous girls when Toph was there right in front of him, a few yards away. Wasn't really much to think about, anyways. Toph obviously hated him right now and what on earth could he even do to get out of this mess? It wasn't like he could send a messenger hawk to Kyoshi Island or anything. Kyoshi Island, huh? After breaking up with Suki, he actually tried to date Ty Lee, even though she recently joined the Warriors.

It was funny, she called him cute _before_ beating the crap out of him while they were enemies. He decided to expand on that and see what would happen, but it didn't last too long since Suki was always there and many other complications. Toph would hate that, he'd try to keep the names of his four girlfriends secret for as long as he could before she would literally pound the information out of him. A loud grunting noise coming from the area Toph was in snapped Sokka out of his past memories and geared him back onto the present. Toph was there, only a few yards away. He had no idea where Poppy or Lao where, but this place couldn't be too big, wherever it was. Definitely wasn't her house. And yeah, they _would_ take away everything from the both of them that would remotely help their chances of escape. Toph couldn't Bend wood and Sokka couldn't Bend wood unlike Katara as she could feel the water inside of it. Toph didn't need her arms or feet to Bend earth now, as she brilliantly showed before their capture and that would help things IF she actually had something to Bend.

That would absolutely improve their chances, maybe even save their lives if she had something. Heck, even if they could talk they could figure something out. It was hard enough to breathe with that blasted rag in his mouth and it was probably no different for Toph as well. Something, anything would work. If he could find something, he could also find a way to tell her. Oh wait, she wouldn't be able to see it, these guys had them trapped in a place where Toph was practically useless. Any type of stone, no matter how small, Toph could use it and stretch it, do whatever she wanted with it. There had to be something. As he searched the surroundings, leaning himself up against the wall in his tight-wrapped rope cocoon, he caught a very brief shine coming from Toph's cell, and that earned his attention. Wood doesn't shine in that way, it had to be something different. He studied her again, in hopes he'd see the cause of the glimmer. For the longest time, there was nothing. Then, right before his eyes were about to close from exhaustion, he saw it again. Toph moved slightly and the remaining light from the outside caught one of her earrings and glistened.

Earrings! Did she know that she still had them on? Well, that was a stupid question. Even for him. Of course she'd know if she had something on, she was a girl after all! Girls _always_ know what they wear. He was shocked that she hadn't thought about those yet. They had to be stone if they were the same type of earring she had given him five years past. He'd have to tell her somehow, if in fact she'd actually listen to him. He was surprised they took everything away except for her earrings, maybe they thought that those didn't count? Whatever the reason, it was their folly and he could take advantage of it if he could even figure out how to get Toph's attention. The odd thing was that he thought Toph would know this, and was surprised she hadn't used them already. Perhaps she thought it'd be impossible and was still depressed over the fact that she had to surrender. If she was standing on ground, she would have practically limitless control over earth and her connection with the element was like it was part of her soul. He figured that she might have thought about it, but since there was no ground to stand on, it'd be extremely hard for her to do it, not to mention the obvious pain she was receiving from her ropes and broken arm. Still, he had to try _something._ It wasn't like Toph at all to act like this, and she always seemed to break her mold whenever she was with him.

Toph woke up from her pathetic sleep and could hear Sokka moving and making sounds like an idiot. Just what did he want, anyways? This was all his fault she was here, she could have saved her family, this didn't feel good at all. Despite her current feelings for him, she decided to pay attention to his noises to try to make out something. Her sense of hearing was unbelievable due to her blindness and ability to feel people's emotions. Sometimes even without the aid of the earth underneath of her. It was annoying, but she tried to listen to him. "Ungh! Unngh!" is what she could make out at first, but she listened in closer. "Rrnngss! Rrnngss!"

What? Just what was he trying to say? "Rrnngss?" That kind of sounded like, 'rings' but why on earth would he say that? Not a very romantic place to propose if that's what he was thinking. He wasn't being stupid, though. She had a very strange feeling that something was up, that she had overlooked a vital piece of information, but what was it? She turned over and her head rested on the splintered surface. Frustrating, those stupid earrings were pressing up against her on that wood, making it very uncomfortable. Not to mention that it'd hurt to try to lift herself back up. She'd have to roll and suffer with the wondeful pain and then prop herself up on the walls again. Wait, earrings? Oh! That's what he was trying to say! Her stone earrings! Would be very difficult, however. She had no earth to stand on in order to help her gain connection with the element, and she'd have to use all her thought to not only move the things, but to first unfasten them from her ears. Then she'd have to carefully cut the ropes without piercing her skin and even if she managed that, she still wouldn't be able to see. Plus, the bars were so very small, she couldn't really sneak through them. Telekinesis would have been perfect for this type of situation. Well, one point for Sokka. She couldn't believe she didn't think about it before.

"Ugh," she thought, "Here it goes. Hope you're on to something here, Sokka." She focused, nothing like she had ever done before. One small mess up and she'd be done. Her ears might have to bleed, chances were that she wouldn't be able to extract the accessory with perfect ease. She'd still kill him, though. Didn't like this at all. The pin slowly turned and the piece floated in the air, commanded by Toph's mastery over anything that contained earthen minerals. The same happened with the second, and now the hard part came: She'd have to sharpen these objects and pray that she hit the right spots. She heard the feint sound of the earrings sharpening, and carefully rubbed the jewelry across her face until she felt the filthy rag in her mouth. _Slice!_ There, that horrible thing was now out of her mouth. She coughed a few times and her throat choked once or twice, but once she had the taste out of her mouth, she continued along her way down the body. She felt the ropes, all she had to do was cut them and she'd be free. Almost. She'd still have to find her way out and find a method to rescue Sokka, too. HE should be the one rescuing HER. Why'd she have to do all the work?

These ropes were thick and even though she sharpened her earrings to a very fine point, it was still hard trying to break out of them. She'd just have to nick the edges, she could bust out if the ropes were weakened. Only had to get her hands free, too. Once those were set, she could undo the rest of her. She almost lost it a few times, but she was able to cut parts of the ropes that tied up her shoulders. She was done, it was so difficult controlling the earrings in the first place, and she didn't have any energy left to continue the job. What she did would have to do, and if she was lucky, she'd be okay. She moved her shoulders and arms inside the ropes, and was able to loosen it some more. A sharp pain was sent through her arm and up to her hair, causing saliva to spew from her mouth. It was that arm, again. If it hadn't been broken before, it most definitely was by now. After some heavy breathing and some more pain from that, she continued again and was finally able to rip apart the top bindings.

Her right arm almost made her double-over in pain, it was so intense, even made her lips quiver for a few seconds. "Okay," she actually spoke this time, without that rag in her mouth, "Let's untie the rest of me." Toph felt around the ropes and slowly undid each knot, freeing her from their tight painful clutches. Once the last bit was undone, she through the pile across her confinement, getting it out of her way. Only one thing left to do now; escape. She got on her hands and knees and felt around for her two earrings that she had elongated in order to sharpen and cut the ropes. The tip of one of them poked her finger and she pulled back for a second in instinct, before picking them up again. "Whew. Alright. Sokka, you're next."

Sokka replied with a grunt which almost made her laugh. "I can't see a thing, don't know what I'm doing." She joined the two earrings together and stretched them out to the size of a small dagger, Bending all the minerals inside the farthest she could. The blade was razor-sharp, maybe even greater, this holding was only wood, she'd pull a Katara and use her skills to cut through the bars. Only needed to cut about halfway through two or three, then she could force her way out. Sokka would have to be her eyes and guide her to him, and she hoped that no guards were on their way.

She put her hands on the walls and felt around for a bar and an opening, then the next bar. She wanted to judge the distance between the two and decipher how she was going to attempt this amazing feat. She blew her hair up with her bottom lip before she did anything else, thinking about Sokka. Some way to protect her, huh? Crazy kid was the one who needed saving now. Oh, she'd give it to him. She'd totally beat him up after all the crap she had to put up with through this mess. "Alright, boy. Here I come. Let's see what I've got." She made one quick slash across two of the beams and then felt them to determine the amount of damage she did. "Hmm, needs one more hit. This blade is getting weak, too. I can feel it. If I can't get it with this slice, that's it. My earring knife thing I made here will break no matter what."

Toph felt around the beams again to make sure her second and most likely last attack would hit around the same spot it did before. With a sigh, she made another powerful strike and her make-shift knife shattered. "That's it. Did it work?" She felt the marks again and was relieved that her attack landed where she wanted it to. All she had to do now was bust out of the wooden cage and find Sokka. Yeah, bust out with a broken arm and walk around blindly. Seemed like a very easy task. "Sokka, no idea where your dumb self is. Make some noises to guide me." Sokka grunted and made other similar loud noises in attempts to lead Toph to where he was. He saw her bash into many empty cells and walls and with each bump, her face became red. She was already angry, this didn't help his situation at all. "Toph! I'm right here!" is what he wanted to say, but all it came out was a jumbled sound of nonsense. She got the basic idea, however. After like the fifth or sixth try, her fingers came across another cell's bars and Sokka's hair, since he was lying face down near where she was. "Hey you idiot. Found you." She used her good arm and felt around Sokka's head until she located his gag, and took it off of him. Wasn't really gentle, though. She tore it off and it made his eyes twitch in slight pain.

"Toph! You could be a bit more gentle, you know! Come on, girl!"  
"Sokka, I'll do whatever I want," she told him and nothing more. She felt some more around him and found the ropes which bound him. She untied the knots and when they were loose enough, Sokka was able to slip himself out of the bindings. Even though he was out, her hands were still on him. "Toph, I'm out. You can stop feeling around me, now."  
"Yeah..." she said, reluctantly pulling her hands away. "Now what? I can't see you, how am I supposed to get you out, oh mighty guardian? Last time I'm letting _you_ protect me. That's for sure."  
"We have hands, don't we? We'll pull on the bars. You use your good arm and I'll kick the bar out as you pull. Don't worry, I won't kick your hand."  
"You better not, you jerk!"

Sokka had completely forgotten about his wounded leg, but that didn't matter now. He lined himself up to the bars and waited for Toph to put her hand on it as well. When she signaled that she was ready, he kicked with all his might and she pulled. It took some tries, but with the last kick and pull, the bars were broken and Sokka managed to roll himself out of the cage. The two sat there, him looking at her and her 'looking' at him with her eyes pointed in his direction. He hugged her and she came back to her senses and pushed him off. She then proceeded to tackle him, sending him to the floor and forcing a kiss onto his lips. When it was over, she shoved him back down to the floor.

"Don't you EVER do that again! Don't say that you love me if you put me into a situation like this! What's your problem? Next time, keep your word, okay? You could have saved them! I don't know where they are! They could have already killed them! And what about you, you little moron? They could have killed you as well! Then where would that leave me, huh? You never think things through, Sokka!"  
"Toph, they wouldn't have bothered to capture your parents if they were just going to kill them. They'd have done that already. There was no way I could have won that fight while defending them, I had no choice. I wasn't about to chance a thing."  
"You..." she hadn't thought that through, "Sokka?"

"What?"  
"I'll kill you later, let's just get out of here, okay?"  
"Yeah, I was waiting for you to stop yelling at me. Let's go."  
"Go? Where do you think you're going?" asked a well-equipped guard with sword drawn.


	15. Dripping Down Your Skin

**Chapter Fourteen: Dripping Down Your Skin**

The well-armored guard smiled as he looked at two fresh victims, ready for the killing. The only problem was, he'd have to spare the girl for negotiation purposes. The boy was a different story, but these two kids were unconscious for two whole days, when they should have lasted three. Something was wrong here, but that wouldn't matter much longer.

Frozen in place, Sokka kept his eyes on his opponent, the glimmer of his blade reflecting off his armor. The plates he wore resembled Fire Nation, but only by a tiny margin. The headpiece looked almost identical to the Fire Nation's, and the plates were red, but everything else was different. With black chainmail underneath the plates, he was protected very well. It had no spikes on it save for the helm, and it looked very mobile, probably a light and yet sturdy metal for easy movement. A second look revealed only two exposed areas in the armor; the face and a small part of the neck.

Sokka was trained a warrior, taught by the Water Tribe and by the Kyoshi Warriors during the time he dated Suki. He knew how to defend himself with or without a weapon, but he never really bothered to use that knowledge too often since he always had his sword. If this was hand-to-hand combat, he might stand a chance, but being armed with two fists, an injured leg, and a sleeveless shirt, it wouldn't be much of a fight. Not to mention Toph, she wouldn't be a help at all here. She'd only get in the way and slow him down. The guard took one step forward and Sokka freaked, looking for some type of weapon to defend himself with. He grabbed one of the broken wooden stakes and pointed it at his enemy.

"Aha! Take a look at this!" he boasted.  
The guard laughed. "Haha! What's this? A wooden stick, boy? Who do you think I am?"  
"Sokka..." Toph said, with some worry in her voice.  
"Toph, be quiet and get outta my way."  
"What did you just say?" her eyebrow raised.  
"You heard me. You can't see. Just turn around and run until you hit that back wall, you'll be safe there."  
"But I..."  
"Go!" Sokka pushed her forward and she took the hint.

"Safe? Sokka," the guard said, addressing him in a friendly manner, "There is no such place. It's true I can't kill her just _yet, _but we don't really need you around."  
"Yeah, but she does. And I need her. You can just go to the grave."  
"Big talk for someone without a weapon," he said, aiming the point of his blade to Sokka.  
"Huh? Whaddia talking about? This stick is all I need to end this."  
"Alright, let's go. I could use a good bloodletting right about now."

The two charged at each other and Toph was at the far back wall, curled and hugging her knees. What was going on, and since when was she so afraid? Love was a dangerous thing, if she lost Sokka, she literally wouldn't know what to do. She'd die. She'd _let_ them kill her. That's why she was afraid, she didn't want to lose something that she had desperately longed for and just recently received. She was so frightened, she couldn't even speak. She hated it. Hated herself for feeling this way, just hated it all.

Sokka strafed to the left, nimbly (as much he could with a hurt leg) dodging another strike. This person may have had light armor and a sword, and even had a handicap because Sokka's leg was causing pain, but it was obvious that he hadn't had much experience in real combat. Sokka, on the other hand, was a seasoned fighter and even after the war was over, he trained daily; always wanting to be like his father. "Quit dancing around! How are you even doing that? I'm trying to cut your head off!"

"Yeah, sure. No problem, buddy. Even I'm not that stupid." He jumped high in the air, letting the sword miss its curved slash under him, and planted the pointed end of the wood into the soldier's face. Sokka landed on top of the breastplate, pushing the man down from his attack. He crippled from the pain in his leg, but it didn't make him lose his focus. The soldier's horned helmet rolled across the floor, showing the rest of his bleeding face. The man's splintered eyes were red with blood, all of it spreading across his mouth, nose, and onto the floor.

Sokka wiped his own face off with his shirt and smiled at the felled enemy. "You can't even talk now, can you? I don't usually enjoy killing someone, I try to avoid it, but you threatened my girl. You also played a part, and I don't care how big or small it was, in her parents' kidnapping." Sokka extracted the sword from the man's fingers and touched his neck with it. "I don't mind killing you at all." Sokka slit his throat and let his blood spray into the air until nothing was left. "Nobody threatens Toph or her family while I'm still alive."

Toph, hearing all of this, slowly rose and walked towards Sokka, with her arms spread out trying to touch anything that would be in front of her. Sokka greeted her with a hug and as her hands found their way to his legs, she felt some blood coming from one of them. "Sokka! You fool! You're bleeding! Stop pushing yourself so hard, hypocrite! Don't expect me to never get hurt if it means you're going to mess yourself up for it!"  
"Toph, I'm trained to ignore this pain. It's not that bad, anyways. Was only bruised or maybe a little worse to begin with. I'll be fine, okay?" _No, not really... It's cold, Toph. The blood's still dripping down my skin..._

"You're lying if you're bleeding. You can't be okay."  
"Would you please stop worrying about me? I can still move. I'll be fine."  
"Yeah, you better be, or else I'll kill you."  
"Yeah, yeah, yeah. You never will."

Sokka put the sword down and looked over the dead soldier's body and armor. "Okay, Toph. I'm going to strip."  
She blushed. "What? Here? We can't do _that_ here! What's gotten into you?"  
"No, Toph. I meant that I'm going to strip him of his armor. It's an old trick, but it always seems to work. It'll give me gear and all I'd have to do is come up with some lame excuse so I can get you out."  
She punched him. "Say that next time, will you? Gah, you made my heart race and everything!"  
"Toph, you're crazy. There won't be a 'next time.' I told you. I'll always protect you."

"Toph, look away while I change."  
"You... Are you serious, Sokka?" she asked him in annoyance.  
"Oh, yeah. That's right. Sorry, Toph. You can't see anything here."  
"Yeah, it's not like you're gonna take off anything, anyways. You're only putting that guy's armor on."  
"Sheesh, Toph. What's with you and my clothing? Still, though, back off some so I have enough room to get this thing on."

"Aww, come on! I bet you look sexy in it," she said with a devilish grin, knowing it'd only get him more flustered and frustrated.  
Sokka, with his face red in embarrassment, actually felt his heart skip a beat. "Yeah, like you could actually see it."  
"Man, you buzzkill. Enough talk, let's get out of here."  
"Yeah, sure. I was just waiting for you to shut up."  
"Sokka, you are so dead once we're out of here."

Once Sokka donned the pilfered armor and sword, he grabbed some of the cut rope and tied Toph's hands behind her back. "Hey!" she said, blushing once again, "What are you doing now? This some sick fantasy or something?" Sokka rolled his eyes and sighed. "Toph, honestly. Get your mind out of the gutter here. I need to do this so they think that I've captured you. And I don't mean your heart," he said, winking at her even though she couldn't see it. "Sokka! You're lookin' at TWO deaths now! Stop making me blush already! Let's just get outta here, augh!"

"Okay, ready?" Sokka made sure the ropes were tight and led her by the leash of it.  
"Great, I feel like a dog."  
"Blah, blah, Toph. Just play the part."  
Toph grunted in acceptance, but Sokka knew that if they got out of this alive, she wouldn't let him stay that way for too long. "Hey, Sokka, where are we?" she asked, stepping closer to him.  
"Sokka? Who's that? You better keep that cute mouth of yours shut, lady."

_WHAT? Oh boy, you just did NOT say that... _"You're really getting into this, aren't you?"  
"Yeah. I'm not this 'Sokka' person. You will address me none other than Rinku the Magnificent."  
"Rinku? What the... You've lost your mind, pal. Whatever, I'll bite. I just want to save my family. And SEE!"

Sokka made sure that his grip on the rope was tight, and that Toph wasn't too far behind him. Even though they had been walking for a while, he really had no idea where he was going, this basement or dungeon, or whatever it was, just kept on going and going. It was the oddest place, too. It was all made out of wood, like they either expected to keep some Earthbenders here, or some part of a tree. A tree wouldn't make any sense, somebody would have noticed a gigantic thing like that, and he was sure that kids would have played around it. Something was bound to be discovered if this was part of some crazy large tree. Perhaps they were underground? They were knocked out for a while, but he didn't know how long. It wasn't probable that he was still in Toph's house, having a huge wodden cellar wouldn't make any sense. Still, no way he could have been unconscious for _too_ long, so they couldn't have been too far away. If he asked someone, that'd raise suspicion, and they'd be done. He stopped before reaching a main door, that would lead out into the rest of this place. The area he'd been in was most likely the 'dungeon' or what have you, and there could be actual metal or something beyond that door.

"Hey, Toph, before we go in," he asked.  
"Yeah?"  
"Any weird places near Gaoling? This can't be the same town."  
"Who knows? It very well may be, Sokka. Oh, I mean _Rinku,_" she said in a sarcastic tone.  
"What do you mean?"

"It's not like I can _see_ everything here, man. I can depict shapes and outlines obviously, but I don't know what each building has! Besides, I was cooped up for the first 12 years of my life. Like I'd know anything. Been here long enough after that, but I don't really care about other people's business."  
"Well, whatever. We'll find out. Oh, Toph, if there's metal or something past this door, play it cool, alright? Don't want to blow my cover. I'll let you know when it's good. I'll tug on your rope three times. That'll be your cue."

She didn't say a thing, partly silenced by how Sokka was actually planning things out. He was treating this just like a mission, putting everything aside and using his seldom-seen tactical skills. The spherical door was opened by the pulling of a handle, and the two walked right into the middle of a conversation. The floors were metal, like Sokka had thought, but he was surprised to see all the men around. The window to his right revealed that they were still in Gaoling, but he had no idea where, and the situation in front of him was much more important. The men around wore the same armor he did, and some others had different outfits on. He had no idea what was going on, but he never really did. All eyes were on him, and the men dumbfounded.

"What's going on here, soldier?" asked another, who seemed like a top General from the tone in his voice and the medals on his chest. Sokka had to think fast. "Yeah, um, what do I do with her? I found her crawling around downstairs, having escaped from her cell somehow. You guys make sure her ropes were tight enough? Looks like she was able to kick out the bars. The girl is pretty strong, even without her Bending."

The General looked at Sokka and then at Toph and scratched his head. "Well, yeah. That's pretty odd. What about her idiot boyfriend? And how come you have her on the floor? She's been known to Bend metal and any other earthen material. "Oh, my apologies. I had nearly forgotten." Sokka pulled her leash to his shoulder and grabbed her like an assailant would. "Toph," he whispered subtlety into her ear, "I'm going to make them believe I've knocked you out. That way, you wouldn't be a threat to them, and they'll start believing me. Act the part."

"_What! No way! If you hit me, I'm gonna..." _she thought, rage building up behind the words.

"What are you doing on the floor there, girl? I told you I didn't want any trouble! What are you doing ignoring me, huh? Fine. I know exactly what to do with you." _Oh crap, Toph is so going to kill me for this, I hope I don't lose any points with her._ Sokka knew that a 'pretend punch' would be very obvious, but he also didn't want to actually hurt her. He tossed her aside and her back landed on the floor. Sokka, with his back turned to the people behind him, used that as a cover. He lifted his fist into the air and let it fly, as close as he could get to Toph's face without hitting her, and close enough to make it seem like he actually did. "There," he whispered once again, "Act unconscious. I'll get us out of here, I need some information first. Besides, way too many people to start a fight just yet." She did as she was told, but definitely harbored some anger because of it.

"Alright, guys. Sorry about that. I'm sort of still green at this, you know?" Sokka said, putting his hand on the back of his head like he was embarrassed. "She shouldn't cause any trouble now, I knocked her out as you can plainly see." He stepped aside and gave a wide berth with his arm and pointed at Toph, who was lying still. "Uh-huh. You're not one to be gentle with young ladies, are you? Not a bad quality, I guess. By the way, if you found this one trying to escape, where's her boyfriend? We had to confiscate that jade sword of his, too. A beautifully crafted object for someone like him. It's mine, now, you see." He turned to the side and displayed Sokka's sword and smiled triumphantly. Sokka was shocked to see his sword on this man's person, but at least he knew where it was now.

"Oh yeah. Him? Poor sap's still sulking in a corner, whatever you guys did, it worked."  
"Really? Well, maybe we should check on him, then. If his girl over there has gotten out, probably won't take that idiot much time to figure out that he can too." The General stepped towards the door, but Sokka blocked his path. "Nah, you don't have to go down there. It's not like he can go anywhere."  
"You have no authority over me, rookie. Step aside."  
"Yeah, well..." Sokka was losing, and feared that his cover would be blown at any moment.  
"Alright, what's your name, soldier?" he asked, now giving a frown.

"Rinku, Sir. My name is Rinku," Sokka said, almost beginning to sweat.  
"Rinku, you say? Now you see, that's just a tad bit odd. Either you're a flat-chested woman with a deep voice, or you're lying to me. I don't like liars under my command."

_Crap!_ Sokka thought, _A female name! I just pulled that out of nowhere! Not cool, man! How was I supposed to know that name actually existed? Not good, oh baby, not good at all... _While he had a few thoughts about this and what was going on, it took all that Toph had to remain still and not burst into laughter after hearing what the General said. Yeah, sure, they were in trouble, but it was still funny nonetheless. Sokka? With a girl's name? Ha! That was too much, and he totally had it coming!

"I don't know who you are, imposter, but I'm positive that you're not one of us and that the Phoenix King would have instated you."_  
Phoenix King!_  
"Ah, I see you're surprised only by the mention of his name. You are obviously not one of us."  
"Oh, I'm not, huh? Hm..." Sokka said with his hand on his chin, "The funny thing is, you're right." With those words spoken, the General undressed Sokka's sword from its sheath and his opponent held up his own stolen blade in defense. At the sound of the clang, Toph jumped up and gave a wide smirk only fitting for someone like her.

"Yeah, just as he said. We're not with you at all. We're with each other." Sokka cut her ropes and then had to switch into a defensive stance, blocking an attack from the General.  
"Toph! Be careful, will you? Your arm!" Sokka said, as he was pushed back and onto his knee by his enemy.  
"Sokka, you're one to talk, fighting with that leg of yours. I'll be fine, Meathead. Don't tell me to do something if you're not gonna do it yourself."

The General smiled as he was forcing Sokka down to his other leg. "Ah, pretty clever, buddy. She's just fine. Well, whatever. You see all these people around us? Even if she can Bend the metal here, she can't see a blessed thing, so we're still going to win. Lucky for her, we can't kill her just yet. However, you're expendable at any time. We don't need you at all. You were just trash that we picked up with her." Sokka fell to his other knee and his opposing force gleamed a smile almost as bright as the sword's own shimmer. "Don't you worry, though. It's not like we'll keep her alive for too long, anyways. After we're done with her and her family, she won't be needed any longer. We win, buddy. Face it."

Just as Toph was about to rush to help Sokka, the other soldiers all attacked her. A total of about ten of them, maybe twelve, she couldn't decipher the exact amount during the time. "I ain't no blind helpless little girl! You've all got balls for chargin' at me, but stupid all the same. I can see you all just fine. Come get me." The room was large enough for the combat, but it wasn't like they could run around in an open field, they had their limits and so did Toph. It could be hard for her to pay attention to each and every single one while worrying about Sokka. That idiot. He really did not have to put her through all of this toil. She stomped her foot and a metallic wave from underneath the floor rose up and knocked them all down.

"Yeah, that's smart, guys. Why don't you all just attack me coming from the same direction? Honestly, give me some fun here, let's see what ya got," she taunted them.  
"You've got quite the mouth, girl," said one of her attackers, "What makes you think that you can take us all on?"  
"Oh? Hmm, I dunno... Seems logical. One little girl versus twelve of you. Sounds fair enough to me."  
"Ah, so you're a sass, too. We kinda like it when our girls get a little fiesty over here. You see, we don't get too many visitors."  
"Well this fiesty, rude, sassy, little girl belongs to that dodo brain over there," she said pointing to Sokka, "So stop dreaming, okay?" She smiled and the metal flooring under their feet rumbled, and ultra-sharp spikes formed, impaling every single one in a gorey mess.  
"There. When I get things done, I get them done! Now Sokka, you––"

Her sentence was cut when she noticed the two shadowed outlines of her love and his enemy. Out of all the times she was finally able to see, now standing on this metal... "Sokka!"

The sword that Sokka had originally stolen was no match for his own, which his enemy had stolen. He knew that from the start, too. This sword wouldn't last much of a length of time up against something so extravagant as that jade weapon. His own blade was inches away from his shoulder, barely being kept up by pouring his strength into the sword he now held. His arms were shaking, legs trembling on the floor. That leg of his finally made known the pain, and he couldn't ignore it any longer, despite all the rigorous training he'd been through. It was good that he also wore this armor, but if the material on this armor was anything like their swords, that wouldn't last much longer, either.

"Afraid of being struck down by your own blade, boy? I don't know, for me, that makes it fun. Besides, I'm curious to see exactly what this precious sword of yours can do, anyways. Congratulations! You will now be the first official test subject for my new weapon! You've kept me very interested, the both of you should have been out for three days, but here you come on the second. It's going to be so much fun killing you, buddy."  
"Hey!" Toph interrupted, "Get your hands off of him! He's MY prey!"

"What's your problem, girl? Keep that fine body of yours away from us or I'll just end him here. Don't move, don't think, don't even breathe. I don't want any trouble from you, all it'll take would be a quick second and a clean slice. Don't you dare do a thing, got it?" Toph was silent, what could she do? It wasn't like she could see everything clearly to begin with, only vibrations, shapes, and other various limitations. This guy had the advantage, a seasoned warrior like him would definitely 'sense' an attack coming from her. She had to wait it out, as much as she loathed herself for it. He turned his head back to Sokka and grinned. "Well, well, little buddy. Seems like your hot chicky-poo over there doesn't want to do anything to save your life. Such a tragedy. Well, she knows that she'll survive this fight, we can't kill her just yet. Why would she risk her neck for you? You're going to die anyways, friend."

Sokka pushed his sword up in a surprise attack, and forced the man off balance with his sudden movement. "Huh-whaat?" was the man's response. "Like I'd actually let you kill me, or even touch my girl. You said that she can't protect me? She's not supposed to! I'M the one who protects her! I don't care if my leg hurts, bleeding, whatever. That doesn't matter. The only thing that will ever matter to me will be her, and her safety. You're the only one left, here. Give me back my sword and tell me where her parents are."  
Toph could feel Sokka's spastic vibrations as he wobbled back and forth, taking all the strength he had to just stand up, much less pull off a bluff. Why? Why was Sokka even going this far for her? He mattered too, that loser!

"Find them yourself, I won't tell you a thing!" He charged at Sokka again, and with his remaining strength left, Sokka dodged the attack and cleaved the General's head off within his final instant before toppling over from the intense pain in his leg. "Give me back my sword," he said, reaching out to it while breathing heavily on the undisturbed metal floor. It was over, almost. He and Toph managed to escape and kill those who would hinder it. What that man said haunted him in a way, though. What did he mean that they should have been unconscious for three days? And how was it even possible that they were out for two? They were still in Gaoling, after all. It didn't make any sense. And now, to make things even worse, the Phoenix King. Was that really Ozai? What could he do, didn't Aang seal his Bending? The guy should just be a pathetic weakling now, not some mighty god. Something was amiss, and he didn't like it much at all.

"Sokka, get up, you stupid lazy person. I need to talk to you," Toph threatened, wanting to get some very important issues off her chest.  
"Unngh, I'm wiped, Toph! Come on, girl. Let me sleep for just a few..."  
"No!" _Whack!_ She hit him on the head after tossing his helmet aside. "We're going to talk here and now. We'll jet from this place in a second, but this is more important." He sighed, but then sat up, sheathing his jade sword and hugging it. "What do you want? We should get out of here."  
"What do I want?" Toph screamed, "I want you to stop acting so stupid!"

"Umm, Toph?"  
"Shut up!" she said, now a few tears coming from her blind eyes, "Just shut up! I don't understand you, Sokka! I really don't! You put me through all this garbage trying to 'save' me, and do you even know how much I worried about you through all of that? Or my family? I don't like these emotions, Sokka! I can't figure them out! I don't want them! And then you..." she paused, taking a breath. "Toph?" Sokka asked again, extremely worried about what was going on with his girl.

"I didn't say you could talk! I'm not finished!" she snapped at him, "How could you say something like that, huh? What do you mean that I'm not allowed to protect you? That everything is okay if I'm alright but you're about to die? What the hell kind of thinking is that? You matter, too! Are you saying that I can't do anything and just watch you suffer? That it's okay doing that? Like it's not my role or something? What's with you, that's the stupidest thing you've ever said!" her voice screeched, now actually beginning to cry.

"You don't care that you're hurt or bleeding? Fine! You don't have to! But remember, I care! You can't be acting all like this invincible hero who can survive anything as long as he has resolve! We're in this together, okay? If you're gonna shed your blood for me, don't you even DARE to think that I'll just let it drip down your skin if I can do something about it! You don't protect me, I don't protect you. That's not how it works, Sokka. We protect each other. Together. Even I know this, what's wrong with you? You stupid...self-centered..."

Bewildered, Sokka looked at Toph with confused eyes and a dumbstricken mouth.  
"Well? Say something!" Toph yelled at him.  
"What do you want me to say, Toph? You pretty much covered everything."  
"So..."

Sokka took Toph's hands and pressed them up against his heart. "You feel this, Toph? The beating of my heart? What does that tell you? Honestly."_  
Thump thump! Thump thump! _She could hear it so loud and clear, and could also feel all of Sokka's emotions inside of it. "It says that you love me, but your brain doesn't seem to register what exactly that means." Sokka smiled. "And you would know? So you're the all-knowing expert of love, huh?" Toph blushed and then skipped a breath. "No, I don't understand it at all..."

"You don't? Well, maybe you need to check those vibrations of yours again." He scooted closer to her, still holding her hands and proceeded to press one of her hands near his heart and the other onto his head. "Okay, tell me now. What do you think I understand about it?"  
"I don't know! I can't read minds! You're crazy, Sokka! You're-" he kissed her and at that very instant, and for some strange reason, that took all of her pent-up emotions and contradictions and threw them away. She didn't even care if the enemy found them, she wanted this, wanted it to taste this pure and wonderful every single time he did it. "There," he said, gently escaping from her lips, "What does _that _tell you?"

"All I ever needed to know, Sokka," she said, hugging him.

"You're right, though. I can't put you through pain in order to save you from pain, even if I'm the one getting hurt. You still feel it, too." He tightened the hug, bringing her closer to him. A little bit _too_ close, but hey, she wasn't going to complain. "We'll look out for each other together."  
"Yeah. Hey Sokka," Toph said, quickly changing the subject because she had just about all she could take this 'lovey-dovey emotional' stuff, "Where do you think my parents are?"

* * *

Some parent she was, avoiding her daughter after all these years. Zuko didn't want her to see Azula, and she understood that, but how could she agree to it? Even after she was back, Azula's keepers wouldn't allow any outside contact for years. She finally forced her way through, and after seeing her daughter like that, it was a very scary sight. And now, she had escaped, gone to who knows where, and her son was becoming worried. She felt like this was all her fault, just like everything else had been. Her hand touched her face and felt the faded scar, reminding her of Zuko's. His was far worse than hers, but at least she sort of knew he how felt. As for Azula, she couldn't figure her out at all. Just what was it originally that made her snap? And where was she now? Nobody in the castle knew, and quite frankly, most of the people in the castle didn't even care. If she wasn't there, she wasn't a threat, and they didn't want any part of her. Especially after she had brutally killed and maimed those prison guards a while back. She walked to the Throne Room, where her son, and his fiancé were.

Zuko ordered a search party for his sister, but even as the Firelord, those under his rule still refused the command. Since hardly anyone in the Fire Nation wanted to risk their life to save such an unstable, psychotic devil, he did the only thing he could think of at the time. It was a good distance, but his friendship with a certain group of people was built strong after the Fire War because of their constant help and peacemaking efforts. He didn't know for sure, but they'd probably still be in Ba Sing Se, and so would Iroh. He hadn't fought in many years, and Zuko didn't even know if he still had it in him, but he knew for certain that the Kyoshi Warriors could help. A mutual friend was still with them, at that. Ty Lee. She'd want to help out Zuko, and also see Mai. He didn't know if she'd even care to look for Azula, but it was worth a shot and the only real chance he had. The Earth Kingdoms were much closer than the where the Water Tribe was and where the Avatar lived, and he was always moving, bringing unity back to the world, anyways. There was no certain guarantee that he'd even get the message.

The Warriors and his uncle should have received the message roughly about two days ago, and it was unknown if a reply had been returned. It felt like a fruitless endeavor, and by all things taken into consideration, it most likely was. Still, he believed that they were his only hope and they had to find her. Not only did he worry about Azula's safetey, he was concerned about the safety of his own people. If she was still out of her mind, a bloodbath could occur at any possible time. The last thing he needed was for the Fire Nation to be thrown into another war and ruining the citizens' morale, especially if that war was among themselves. He glanced over at Mai, who in turn, crossed her arms and averted his eyes. She was mad at him, _again._ She told him about her contact with Azula and how it ended, in full detail, being so blasé about it, like it was no big deal or wrong to actually do it. She even had smiled when she told him that she made her bleed, how it felt so reassuring seeing that red, thick liquid running down her skin and dripping onto the floor. She hated her, he knew that she hated her. It's not like she had no reason to, however. From a human perspective, she had every single right and then some to hate someone like Azula. She'd killed hundreds, quite possibly even more, and attempted to murder her own brother many times over.

At one point in time, he hated her too. Who wouldn't? Azula was a wild out of control beast, who was almost impossible to stop. He resented her for years after she was locked away, two or three, he couldn't remember, it didn't matter anyways. According to law, Azula should have been executed, and maybe that was even best for his country. However, deep inside of him, he knew that she was still his sister, and he'd never be able to run away from that. It took him a while, but he discovered his love that he once held for his sister. It could have been a mixture of fear inside there, too. Whatever his reasoning, he knew that Mai couldn't understand, and he didn't blame her for it; even though she blamed him.

Mai pouted again, and stepped aside when Zuko tried to touch her shoulder. "Don't touch me, Zuko. You know what's going on."  
"Mai, I wish you'd stop being mad at me. She's my sister, after all."  
"Yeah. She also tried to kill you, stooge. Doesn't that mean anything? Now you've gone and dragged Ty Lee into this mess, too. As fluffy as that girl is, I seriously doubt she'd bother to help. Or the Kyoshi Warriors, for that matter. Azula was a huge influence in Suki's capture, and believe me, no one forgets that sort of thing. I think you made a mistake."

"You think that I _always_ make mistakes."  
"Well, yeah, you do. Why do you think I stick with you? Someone needs to make sure you get things done right. Use your head."

"Mai? Do we always have to fight? You can hate her if you wish, I don't care, but I still want things to go back to when they once were. Yeah, she wasn't much of a sister back then either, but I believe that nobody is ever beyond saving. Uncle taught me that, Mai. That's something I have never forgotten, because he was right. Look at where I was and where I am now. I hope he comes, too. I'd love to see him again. It's been too long since our last meeting."

"Zuko, I don't think that we'll ever stop fighting. Relationships are tough like that, you know? If we didn't fight, we'd have even more problems. Besides, I kinda like it," she said, giving him a wink. Before he could recover after being caught off-guard from her words, Ursa came into the room and smiled at her son.

"Zuko, I know you love me, but I can't be kept away from Azula any longer. Please, allow me to help you find her. I know you worry about my safety, but there's such a burning and stinging pain inside my heart blaming me for what she's become. Maybe part of that is true. Zuko, dear, I'm your mother. I'm her mother, too. Please. I need to see her again." Zuko stood up and walked towards his mother. Kneeling down, he bowed his head. "Whatever you want, Mother. I want to see her, too."


	16. Ultimatum

**Chapter Fifteen: Ultimatum**

Suki found herself walking the streets of Ba Sing Se, occasionally stopping at the train to Gaoling, and then backing away from the station. She mulled over the words she read in that message from the Fire Nation requesting help.

"Azula has gone missing, and we can't find her. I fear for my people and for my country, and also for her, as crazy as it sounds. All the men that I could send out has refused my orders, despite their rankings versus mine. In a way, I hardly blame them. They are all frightened by that woman, and for good reason. We have no idea who's behind this and I ask for your help in this matter. The Kyoshi Warriors are practically the only ones I can rely on, now. You guys are literally my last resource. A message has been sent to Uncle, too, and I hope at least one person comes to my aid."

That was his request, and he was right, it really did sound farfetched and suicidal. Why should she even help someone who locked her away for so long? That was years ago, but it's not like she ever forgave that vile woman for her actions. She had also dishonored the Kyoshi name by impersonating her Warriors. She was messed up six years ago, logically speaking, she could only degress over time. Suki did, however, band all her girls together and told them about the situation. Before the message was received, there had been rumors going around the city that Gaoling had fallen under attack, that a building had been destroyed, killing most of the people inside.

Communication between Gaoling and Ba Sing Se usually took some time, but during attacks and other emergencies, they had a system to send the information at rapid speed. The Kyoshi Warriors, ordained by the King, and with high standing, were the first under him to learn of the situation. It wouldn't take a genius to piece the two incidents together, they both happened around the same time, so they had to be connected. Out of all the places in the Earth Kingdom, Gaoling seemed like such a worthless place to establish dominance over, but then again, it was so small, nobody would ever suspect it. After that, it wouldn't take much effort to infiltrate the Cities from the inside. Even Sokka could figure that one out.

Sokka? Wow. She hadn't thought about him in a long time, but these two events somehow seemed to cry out his name. Despite them being apart for so long, they had developed a connection during the war, and that was never truly lost. She could feel something was up, she just didn't know what it was. When Ty Lee heard of it, she nearly collapsed onto her head from an almost unnatural gymnastic position. When she attended the meeting that Suki arranged, her, along with all the others, were very skeptical. Suki knew that she had to do _something,_ a request from the Firelord wasn't so easily turned down, especially since one of her Warriors was friends with both him and his soon-to-be wife, Mai. Besides, other rumors mixed along with facts revealed that during the attack on Gaoling, two people had been captured: a swordsman and a powerful, blind Earthbender. There was only one person that could have been, and Sokka was with her now? Well that's cute...

All her feelings and memories were taken back to the days when they were dating, oh! What wonderful days! She owed his life to him, she never forgot that, and that deed was never truly paid back. Ty Lee had dated him for a few months, as well. She constantly said that he was cute, and after the break-up, Suki lost control of her temper and said, "Yeah? Well, fine! Just go out and date him, then! See if I care!" Problem was, she did. She really did care, and after all those years, she suddenly felt like she cared again. Toph seemed like she'd be a better match, those two were always together and she could always see how close Sokka was to Toph. Did they finally decide to get together? Well, that was cool, good for him. Yeah, good for him...

She got her thoughts back together and sat down on a bench, near the station, awaiting the rest of her Warriors along with Iroh. She recalled after reading the letter and visiting Iroh, he already knew what was going on. In fact, he even had some inside resources that made him question the activities in Gaoling well before the destruction even happened. After a cup of hot tea, he smiled at her. He wasn't the out of shape old man that he was way back when, he toned up ever since the war, and his appearance was now just as intimidating as his name: The Dragon of the West.

"Are you going to go, Suki?" he asked her at the table.  
"I, well, um..." she stuttered, wishing that she had her face paint on now, or anything for that matter; she really wanted to hide that blush in her red cheeks.  
"Ha! My dear, I think this goes beyond what we can see, now. I've had intelligence on that small city for a few years now, this doesn't ring right to me. My nephew is probably correct in worrying about his country, but I'm worried about him. He may do something overly drastic, he can still get carried away with something he is passionate about. Even good intentions can lead to evil things."  
"Yeah, I think you're right, Iroh. This doesn't feel right at all. I can't tell you why I'm hesistant, but if you think that we should go, then we must. I had thought the same."

"Oh? Hmm? Well, whatever your personal feelings are, this goes beyond us. You believe Azula is somehow tied into the situation with Gaoling?"  
"I think so, yes. It all seems too suspicious, hardly doubt it's just a coincidence. If we're going to go, we should leave immediately. I'll gather the girls together. We can meet at the station. The sooner the better, it will take close to a day to get there." _Yeah, and I also want to see him. I think? No! I shouldn't be doing that! He has Toph! But I... I don't have anybody..._ Stupid girls and their contradictory feelings, why she'd even have to think this way? It wasn't like she still loved Sokka, yeah? Well, no, it wasn't that. It was something else, but what exactly did that mean?

Suki took a deep breath and exhaled, sitting on the bench, and waiting for the rest to show. Ty Lee was the first one to come, while the others finished up their business with the King. As always, Ty Lee didn't just simply walk over towards her, she tumbled and rolled, at least a few yards away. Did that girl even know _how_ to walk? She did one final cartwheel and stood in front of Suki, her arms spread, wearing the Kyoshi outfit along with the face paint.

"Ah, I see that you're all ready," Suki said, giving a slight laugh.  
"Well, yeah! You told us to be! You can't be the only one prepared, Suki! It's going to be fun seeing Zuko and Mai again! I don't know why I get on her nerves, though. She needs to lighten up."  
"Ty Lee, you get on _everybody's _nerves. You could act a little less happy and energetic sometimes. It's too much sometimes, like an overload of cuteness," Suki laughed, "It hurts!"

Ty Lee just smiled and did a few more rolls before sitting down on the bench. "Don't be so stiff, Suki. It'll mess up your aura and stuff. You're kinda grey right now, though. You okay?"_  
Ah! Ty Lee! _"Yeah, why wouldn't I be? I'm just annoyed the rest are taking forever to get here. What's their problem? We gotta go! And where on earth is that Iroh? Guy never knows how to be on time."  
"Eh? You're funny, Suki. He always serves his tea on time! He knows what he's doing!"

"That's not what I meant, Ty. Man, you're so oblivious sometimes. Has to be that playful and sunny personality. Bet you can't see past it."  
"Nah, I usually can't. Don't want to either. Oh, say? Is Zuko married yet?"  
"I don't believe so, it won't be much longer though."  
"Ha, okay. Knowing Mai, she's getting so annoyed at the whole process. Do you ever want to be married, Suki?"  
"What? Well yeah, eventually..."

"Oh? What's this? I can see you blushing even through the paint! What's going on?" Ty Lee said, getting all perky and jumping, expecting her leader to already be in a secret romance.  
"Nothing," Suki replied, now feeling really uncomfortable.  
"Ah! You're not thinking about Sokka, are you? He's pretty cute, I don't blame you. He was a lot of fun."  
"Hey! I think he's with Toph now, okay? Get off it, it doesn't matter anyways, got it?"  
"Yeah, sure. Don't want you getting all depressed on me."

Suki wanted to pound her friend for saying such a thing, but then she'd also have to hit herself. Why was it that after all this time, Sokka was now being placed back inside her mind? And her heart? No, not her heart. Not yet. Why'd that boy have to be so romantic, anyways? That ladies' man knew exactly what he was doing, that was all his fault. She hoped that Toph was in fact with him now, she wouldn't have to worry about all these suppressed feelings, but she could live with the opposite sceneario. Oh, man. Just what was going on with her? Good thing that Ty Lee didn't really care, but how come she herself couldn't find a way to move on? She thought she already had! _Sokka! Get out of my head!_

It was silent after that, Ty Lee didn't like Suki snapping at her, and Suki didn't much like what Ty Lee was saying. All that was left was to wait for everyone else to show up. Suki lost count of how many times she rolled her eyes until the rest of her campaign finally came into view. Iroh wasn't with them, perhaps he already left? One of the battle-ready girls came up to Suki and apologized for their tardiness. "Sorry that it took so long, we are ready now. Iroh said he'd leave on his own. I believe that he already has. Are we all good?"

"Yeah, it's already getting dark. We need to hurry up and get there before something bad happens." The Kyoshi Warriors presented their royal seals from the King, granting them free passage, and all entered the train to Gaoling. In a few hours, they'd reach their destination, but Suki didn't know where to go from there.

* * *

Since they left that prison building or whatever it was, Sokka tried to keep their appearance unseen to the public. Anything could happen, now. It wouldn't take long for their enemy to realize what happened if they were already this well prepared and thought-out. He couldn't even trust the citizens, regardless of what Toph was telling him. Even a friendly person would spread the news that these two had escaped and were somewhere within the city. Not only would that cause panic, but also more problems and troubles that they didn't need. It took him a few arguments with Toph until she finally got it, she was still thinking that he was trying to run away. He told her that they had to stay hidden, just in case somebody saw them. They had no idea where to go, either.

If Toph hadn't believed that, and Sokka wasn't really sure she actually did, she eventually conceded once her arm began to hurt and feeling Sokka's pain through his trembling movements. She hated to admit it, but he was right. _Again. _Their best bet was to lay low and figure out what was happening before making any sudden movement. At the very least, stay back, strategize, and heal. Once the rain started to pour, that pretty much broke what was left of Toph's defiance, giving Sokka the winning argument. With the rain pounding the earth, everything looked hazy and chaotic, enough to give her a headache. The emotional stress and everything else she had been going through was also starting to surface, making this whole adventure one of her 'not-so-good' days.

With her Earthsight skewed from the rain, she couldn't even walk without tripping and falling down. She couldn't tell where to step and where not to, it was so confusing, and she didn't need any more of it. Sokka took her hand and was about to lift her up, but decided against it, after feeling a lovely sharp pain electrifying his leg. "Toph, how are you feeling?" he asked.  
"How do you think I'm feeling?" she answered, agitated that he'd even ask such a question.  
"Yeah, I thought as much. Hold on, Toph. I gotta find a place to get away from this rain. Maybe splint that arm of yours if I can." Toph pointed to his leg as if to say, "You're hurt too, moron," and Sokka laughed. "Well, yeah. I'll have to figure something out with that, too." He clasped her hand, interlocking his fingers with hers. "Try to deal with it for now, okay? I'll find us a dry, safe haven."

Saying that was much easier than actually finding one. He couldn't just walk in the middle of the city with Toph in hand, especially while still wearing that strange armor. He even had to stealth himself a few times, trying to get out of the city, and avoiding contact with people nearby. He almost lost it once or twice, nearly giving away their position. "Sokka," Toph asked softly, "Could you please hurry? This rain is really not helping me." He ignored her, and continued along his way. After about ten of fifteen minutes, they safely and covertly exited the city, and not too far from it was an overlooked small cavern. They got there and Toph tried to shake off all the water, just like a dog. "Ah, thanks. This is much better. But hey, wait... We're alone?" she asked with a combination of both fear and excitement.

"Alone? You kiddin' me? Can't you see the armies of murderous soldiers behind us?" Sokka said jokingly, knowing full well that there was only a stone wall there. She knew it too, that's what made it so funny.  
"Sokka, if I wasn't so beat, I'd hit you for that lame joke."  
"Well, take all the time you need to rest, Toph. I doubt this rain will let up anytime soon. We'll have to stay here for the night."_  
What did he say? No! Wait, I mean yes! No! I don't know! _"You mean... sleep in here or something?"  
"Nah, I thought we'd play tag or have a party. Of course we have to stay here, girl! You want to take a guess on how many people are probably looking for us right now? Get a clue, Toph."

_Sokka, **you** get a clue! _"Oh, well don't try anything funny, got it?"  
"Toph, give me some credit, will you? You've been the only one thinking about stuff like that."  
"Agh!" she shouted, punching him in the gut, but also causing pain to her arm from the turning of her other shoulder. Yep, she lost that argument, too.  
"Hey, Toph. I'm going to take this armor off. Crazy thing is getting in the way and is like a giant red flag saying, 'Here I am! Shoot me!' Plus, I think I can make something out of this stuff. These platings are hard and light, and I can loosen up those chainlinks in the armor. If we're lucky, I might be able to make a cast or something equivalent for both our injuries."  
"Both, Sokka? I thought you said your leg was fine," she jested.

"Well, I should have known better than to lie to you, I just didn't want to make you worry. With all that stuff I pulled back there, I bet I either sprained or fractured this thing. Feels that way, too. If I can get this to work, we can use them as temporary devices. They'll be good enough until we can get the real stuff. I think this will work."  
"Well, hurry up, okay?"

It didn't take him long to undress the armor, exposing his tattered pants and now sleeveless button-down shirt. That was a good suit, too! He looked over at Toph and noticed her holding her arm, sweating, and taking the pain in silence. He stretched out his arm halfway, but pulled it back and came back to the armor. His well-toned hands and arms weren't enough to dismantle the armor and even his sword wouldn't be able to finish the job. He'd need Toph's Earthbending to help him out, but she was already in pain. This had to be done, however. If she didn't have _something_ reinforcing that bone, it would only get worse. He'd need to take care of his own, too. Things weren't looking up at all.

"Sokka? What's wrong? You're sad," Toph said, feeling his heart and the emotions behind it. "Spill, you twit. What's going on?"  
"It's hard trying to keep my feelings to myself when you're here, huh? Well, that arm of yours needs a brace, splint, what have you. I think I can fix it up with this armor, my leg too. I need you to help me with this, hot stuff. Could you Bend this armor and help me take it apart?"  
"You call me that again, and I'll be taking _you_ apart."

The armor was dismantled and unraveled, leaving it in pieces and chains. "Thank you, Toph. Now I just need to cast your arm with this." Sokka picked up the materials and took her arm. She pulled it back, and scowled. "Do you even know what you're doing? This is weird!"  
"Yes, I do. I'm no healer like Katara, but I know how to take care of broken bones. Warriors don't learn just how to chop guys' heads off, Toph. Although, that training is quite fun. You got those wooden dummies and everything! You just–"  
"Sokka, you can stop telling me about your past life. I don't care. Just get it done, already."

He held two of the plates on her arm and took one of the unlinked chainmails and wrapped it around. She squinted and flinched from the pressure, but it wasn't too bad. "Hey, tough girl, this is going to hurt at first. It needs to be tight. You'll have to endure it, but I need you to Bend this metal into a cast. It won't work otherwise, okay?"  
"Fine. I'll make sure you hurt too, Sokka. This is not going to be any fun."

Sokka held the pieces down until Toph motioned for him to let go. She started to Bend, but a slight jolt of pain made her stop for a second. This had to be done fast, regardless of the intensity she'd feel afterwards. It'd be a lot worse if she went slowly, it was painful no matter what. Was just best to get it all done at once and be over with it. She screamed in horrible pain as the metal Bended around her bone, enforcing it and keeping it straight. Her whole body was shaking, trembling. Sokka held her from the waist like he would if the two of them were riding a horse. He nearly cried from that sound, someone so amazing like her shouldn't have to go through something so terrible. He didn't let go until she was finished. Her heavy breathing was a sign that the pain still lingered, but at least her bone was now taken care of properly. Or, almost properly. It was close enough to a professional medic's job, and it would definitely work for now.

After panting and wheezing for some time, she held Sokka's hand. "Whew, I... Yeah, I think it's over. Stupid hand is covered in it, though. I can't use it."  
"Yeah, well you still have your other hand. And that attitude of yours, too."  
"Oh, I'll do something with this attitude, alright."  
She pushed Sokka back and touched his wounded leg. "Ow! What are you doing? That hurts!"  
"Oh, you big baby! For crying out loud... It's your turn now, Meathead. You're not gonna let me go through something like that and expect to not go through the same thing when you pretty much have the same injury."  
"You're right. Toph, how bad does it hurt?"

"Hm? Aren't you trained to ignore the pain, you big, bad, warrior?" she said, poking fun at him.  
"Forget that, just get it done." The same thing happened with Sokka, the pain was excrutionating, but he held it in. Squirming and clenching his fist so tight that his fingernails began to dig into his skin, he was able to withstand the pain without screaming. When it was finished, Toph turned her head away from him, acting like it was her fault he got hurt. Since when did she become so emotional? It was all because of him, he kept changing her, and she didn't like it. Or maybe she did.

"How do you feel, love?" she asked him, almost biting her tongue from even saying that word.  
"Like a sabertooh mooselion just took a chunk out of my flesh. I'm okay now, shaken up, but good enough."  
"Oh, okay," she said with a smile. "Hey, Sokka?"  
"Yeah, Toph?"

"What's it like out there? I can still hear the rain, and I don't know if it's night or day. I really want to look for my family."  
"We will, Toph. Chill. It's night out there, I don't know, maybe like... 3AM or something. We should get some sleep soon. There's no telling what might happen tomorrow. We may be over our heads here, pretty lady. The more rest we can get, the better."  
"A lady? I'm a lady, now?" she said laughing, making Sokka blush.  
"You know, we always seem to have unusual moments wherever we are, huh?"

There was a bit of a silence before Toph put her back up against the wall, where Sokka was. "So, we're stuck here for the night, right?"  
"Looks that way."  
"You wanna sleep together, then?" _WHAT? I didn't just say that! No! I didn't mean that! I meant... I meant..._  
"Eh? We're gonna have to, stupid. We gotta stay in this cave. Ha, I won't get any ideas, you can sleep back here, farthest from the rain. I'll be up front. Okay?"_  
My word, Sokka... you're so oblivious... _"Yeah, whatever. This cave is too small to close up, we'd lose air if I did that. Gotta wait here 'till morning anyways. I'm goin' to sleep. Sorry kid, ya lost your chance." Toph yawned and rested her head on Sokka's lap, almost falling asleep immediately.

"Lost my chance? Toph? What did you mean?" She snored and Sokka rolled his eyes. "How can you fall asleep that fast? You're nuts." It was expected, though. After all those two had been through, she'd should have been out long before now. He was impressed she lasted this long, actually. With all that emotional stress and events that had occured, any other person would have broke by now. He looked down at her sleeping face and stroked her hair. If she only knew how beautiful she looked, if she could only see that fair face of hers.

Everything about her was attractive, her looks, her form, even her attitude. He loved it all, despite her never acting like it, she was extravagant. Every last part. He didn't really understand what Toph meant about him missing out, he already had her. What was she talking about? She was acting very strange, ever since he returned to see her. She was very confused, he knew that much, at least. He was confused, too. He never felt this way with Yue, Suki, or any other girl. "Toph, you keep me wondering about you more every day..." he said as he drifted off to sleep.

* * *

Suki was awoken by one of her girls. "Eh?" she said, rubbing her eyes.  
"Suki, we've just arrived," said one of the Warriors. Suki stretched out a bit, and got out of her seat, exiting the train along with her team.  
"You guys made it just in time," said one of the conductors.  
"Yeah? Why is that?" Suki asked, a little concerned.  
"We are glad to have the Kyoshi Warriors here, our city has gone through some trauma."

"How so?"  
"There are unconfirmed stories that the Bei Fong family has either been killed or kidnapped. Everybody here is worried, you best tread carefully. Some may even think that you're the enemy. I bet some here_will_ think you're the enemy, too. If our Toph couldn't handle them, after she's been helping defend this city for years, I doubt you guys would stand much of a chance."  
"Hey!" Suki grabbed the man by his collar.  
"What are you saying? These reports are unconfirmed, right?"  
"Suki?" asked Ty Lee, surprised at Suki's outburst.

"Y-Yes. Nobody knows for sure, rumors have been spread all throughout the territory. Maybe those responsible are spreading them, whatever's going on, this whole area is in a state of confusion and fear. We have no idea what's going to happen next."

"If it's unconfirmed, you shouldn't be talking like it's already been proven." She put him down and took a deep breath. "Thanks for the warning, we will be careful. I promise that."

She should have been practicing her own words, her heart skipped a beat when she heard that news. If that was true, then Sokka would have been there, too. There was nothing saying that all of this was correct, but it was still tugging at her heart. They'd have to find those two, and fast. No idea where that Iroh was, but she concluded that he was summoned on a different matter, and wouldn't be joining them here in Gaoling.

"So! Where do you think they are, Suki?" Ty Lee asked with a beaming smile, almost bright enough to finish the rising dawn outside.  
"Good question, not sure. These streets are empty, something big is going on here. I doubt they'd still be in the city. It's not like Sokka to just go and get himself killed. Especially if he's with Toph, he'd defend her to the death."  
"That's an oxymoron, Suki," Ty Lee said, giving her a nudge.  
"Suki?" one of the girls said.  
"Yes, Sen?"

"Something doesn't feel right, here. I don't think we should be in the city..."  
"That's probably true. There's no way Sokka would stay here, I can feel that it's dangerous. He has better tactical sense than that." She led the team out of the city and just before she left, she thought that she saw a shadowed figure behind them, moving from corner to corner. She checked again and found that it was nothing, and the streets still barren.  
"Suki? Something wrong?" Sen asked, putting her hand on her shoulder. "No. Let's get out of here, I'm not brazen enough to lead my team into some unknown situation."

They searched for hours outside of Gaoling, hoping to find either Toph or Sokka. Or, even if it came down to it, their remains. Just something to shed light on what was going on. Suki felt really bad not scouting the city, but after the man's warning and what she thought she saw, everything in her told her to leave. Just to forget her proud Warrior mindset and retreat. There was something there, and she didn't like it. It wasn't good at all, she'd have to go back and check it out, but first, she needed to get Sokka and Toph off her mind. If she knew something was going on, Sokka had to as well, but they were supposedly dead or captured, so that meant he had to have been here for a while before her. It all didn't make any sense, and she hoped that once she found him, everything would be pieced back together.

Lost in thought, one of the girls waved her hand and shouted from a distance. "Suki! Over here! There's a cave!"  
"A cave? They could be in there, but be careful. _Anything_ could be in there." She walked up to it quietly along with the rest and nearly let her fan slip out of her hand from the shock of the sight. She found them alright, they were still asleep. Toph had her head on his lap and his arm was on top of her back. Did they...? She shook off the thought and yelled into the cave.

"Hey! Sokka! Wake up, you dope! It's almost noon, silly!"

He snapped out of his sleep, hearing the familiar sound and he rubbed his eyes. Toph still rested on his leg, only making a noise as she turned to her side. "Huh?" Sokka said, still a little bit confused. His eyes beheld Suki and his jaw literally dropped from the surprise. "Suki? What? What are you doing here?" he asked, and then blushed as he remembered Toph was still on him and now that Suki saw it. He wondered what she thought about it, he didn't want to give her any bad impression. Not like she didn't know all about him anyways.

Toph's ears perked up from the word, 'Suki' and she sat up with a yawn. "Sokka? What are you talking about? Why did you say..." her Earthsight revealed Suki's presence. She'd recognize that heartbeat, that body-type, her feelings. She was only a dark outline like everyone else, but the shape of that body of hers... There was no question, she had to look 'hot.' Toph wished that Sokka had never dated her, not while she looked like _that._ Ty Lee broke the awkward moment by creating her own. "Hey, Sokka! You're still cute as ever! How you been? Haven't seen you in a long time!"

_What?_ Toph thought, _Sokka, you dated her too?_ "Hey! Back off, Sunshine! He's mine now, got it?" she said, now clinging onto him, pressing her body into his, keeping her hold as tight as possible. She didn't care if he couldn't even breathe, he deserved a lot worse now.  
"Haha, don't worry, Toph. I've moved on. I don't really care," Ty Lee said, yet again with another face-blinding beaming smile.  
"Yeah, so what are you guys doing?" Suki asked, "Know what's going on?"  
"It's none of your business what we are doing! What are you doing here, Hotness?" Toph snapped, flaring that she was even speaking to her.  
"T-Toph? Y-You're kinndaah chokkink meee..." Sokka said, trying to get his words out.

"Can it, Sokka. This doesn't concern you!"  
"What?" he said, wondering why a conversation with his previous girlfriends didn't concern him.  
"Sokka? What are your girlfriends doing here, huh? You never told me that you dated Ty Lee, too! Come on!" _I can compete with her easy, but as for Suki... Why? Why did she even have to come back?_

Suki waived the heated discussion, and changed the topic. "It's good to know the two of you are alive. Something is wrong here, everybody was saying you guys have died. What's the situation, Sokka?"  
"Not sure, Suki. We were injured a few days ago, but no idea what's going on. Lao and Poppy Bei Fong have been taken hostage, for what reason, we haven't been able to determine. Why are you guys here? We didn't send for any help."  
"Zuko summoned us. Apparently, Azula went missing and we got the letter around the same time explosions were heard in Gaoling. It wasn't hard to put the two together. So, you guys know nothing?"  
"We were captured like three days ago. Last we heard, Toph's family is still alive. They need them for some negotiations or whatever, have no clue. Toph was needed too, but they didn't explain that either. We escaped and now we're here," he almost stopped talking when he remembered something else, "Oh! One of the men we killed said something about the Phoenix King! Is Ozai back?"

"Oh! Well, perhaps? That would definitely explain why Azula is gone. Something's up, here, Sokka. The streets are vacant and someone's out there. We gotta move." She walked inside the cave and grabbed his hand, trying to pull him out, but Toph rumbled the earth and made her fall down. "Hands off! You don't touch him! What's your problem?"  
"MY problem?" Suki asked, now getting irritated with Sokka's new love, "I'm not the one clinging to him and acting all defensive! You jealous or something?" _Yeah, that's right, Suki. You haven't let go of him at all..._  
"Yeah, I'm jealous! Who wouldn't be? I'm not giving him to anybody! I own him!"  
"Toph? I don't think that you..." _Bash! _She hit Sokka on the head, wanting him to stay quiet through the whole conversation.

"You guys need to both calm down, it's bad for your energy if you're angry," Ty Lee said, hoping to qualm the ongoing rivalry.  
"You say something, Fluffy?" Toph said, "I wasn't talking to you. You're to blame, as well." Sick of the meaningless fight, Sen whispered something into Ty Lee's ears and she accepted. Before Toph could react due to her anger, Ty Lee hit all of her pressure points and made her entire body go numb. "There, can we all act civilized now, please?" she asked.

"You little... Man, I'm gonna..." Toph said, trying to find a way to recover.  
"Sorry, Suki. Toph has been acting very strange since I've been back."  
"I have not!"  
"Toph, shut it. Seriously, you're getting on my nerves. I'm not dating either one of them, alright? Already said that you're the one for me. Stop acting like such a girl."  
"I AM a girl!" she said, red in the face with rage.  
"Oh, yeah..."

"Sokka," Suki began, "This isn't about us, that's not why I came. There's some evil at work here, we need to figure out what's going on. I was hoping to use that strategic mind of yours, old friend. I need you." _Woah, you better stop it right there, girl. You might say something that you shouldn't._ Toph let the comment go, as she couldn't do anything thanks to Ty Lee, but didn't like how Suki had said it.

"So, what do you propose we do then, Suki?" Sokka asked.

Her eyes focused on Toph and she sighed before directing the question to her. "Toph? What do you think?"  
"I think that you and Ty Lee stay far away from Sokka, but if you're talking about my parents and Gaoling, I say we just storm the city and blow their frickin' heads off. Nobody messes with me, my family, or my city. I say screw them all."  
Suki laughed at her comment and twirled her fan. "Alright, then. Although I strongly disagree with just charging in there blindly, nothing will change if we just stand here."

"Blindly?" Toph asked, twitching an eye, "You have something against me being blind, Goddess?"  
"Yeah, Suki. You should have chosen your words more carefully," Sokka said. That earned him a punch in the gut from Toph. "You never do! Moron."  
"Ah, yes. But you see, I'm allowed."  
"Yeah? Well..." her sentenced faded, unable to find a witty retort to his comment.  
"Hey," Sen interjected, "Enough with all the love story drama, already. You guys really need to... Never mind, we have work to do."

"Ha! I'm the leader, Sen," Suki said, "But yeah, you're definitely right. We need to trust each other for this one. Sokka, you trust me? I think I have a plan. Need your help."  
"Trust you? Suki after what we went through? I'll always trust you. What's up?"_  
What HAVE you been through, Sokka? You better tell me, or I'll Earthbend you a grave, _Toph said in her mind, getting really upset with him, her, and well, everything else.

"Toph, how many Benders does Gaoling have?" Suki asked.  
"Ermm... hardly any? A lot were killed in the post-war uprisings. Mayor eventually stopped sending them out, and I've been basically defending this stupid city by myself. Good news was, that after our enforcers stopped coming, the activity slowed. It was almost nothing until this whole situation happened. Don't count on them, I bet they're in it by now, anyways."  
"Ah, I see. So we can't really trust or rely on anyone but ourselves, huh?"  
"Not sure. I don't like it there. After these past three days, we really don't know what's going on. When we escaped, nobody was out on the streets. Not a soul. Whatever's going on, it's been in the works for years. I owe them all a few good punches."

"Hey," Sokka said, "I think you're parents are still here. Think about it, if they weren't, how come you weren't taken along with them? These people need some form of 'persuasion' to make them to do whatever it is they need to get done. It wouldn't make sense to just keep us around if they didn't need you. They definitely don't need me. Also, that guard said something about three days, we were only out for two. Today is the third, and with all that activity going on, something's about to happen."

"What do you have in mind, Sokka?" Suki asked, her heart racing, remembering the old days.  
"You'd best slow down that heart rate of yours, Suki. I know what you're thinking," Toph threatened.  
"Toph, as much as I love being fought over by beautiful women, you've already won me. Chill out, okay? You're acting like I'm gonna run away with her or something."  
"Watch it, Sokka. I can feel _your_ heart rate too. You might want to check up on that."

Sokka breathed in and out slowly before continuing to speak, "It's the afternoon now. My guess is that whatever these people are planning will probably happen soon. Toph's parents are trapped somewhere, they probably already think that she's dead. I bet that's exactly what they want, too. If they're trying to take over Gaoling for whatever reason, either killing the Bei Fong's or using their money for some purpose. Maybe striking fear into the people. I don't know."  
"What are you getting at, Sokka? Where's my family?"  
"I don't know."  
"You're worthless!" she shouted at him, punching him yet once again.

"How am I even supposed to..." _Fwip! Cling!_ She heard a metallic noise close-by and ran out of the cave, using the earth to look around. The Warriors heard it too, and the mysterious sound had silenced them all. The moment shattered, all eyes were on Toph as she walked to a tree with a shuriken implanted into it, pinning down a bloodstained note. She didn't know what it was, and her hands were trembling, reaching out to it. Sokka walked up to her, but Suki, of all people, put her hand on her shoulder. "It's a note, Toph. I'll read it." Suki's eyes widened when she saw the spattered dried blood all over the parchment, and read its text in silence, not wanting to worry Toph. "What is it? What's it say? Come on! Tell me, Suki!" Toph pleaded, looking awfully scared.

"It's her," she said with a solemn voice.  
"Her? Who's her?" Toph asked.  
"A...Azula. She has your parents."  
"What! Give me that! Now!" Toph said as she grabbed the paper.  
"Toph! You can't read!"  
"I don't care! I just want to..." her fingers passed over the dried blood. "W-What's this?" she asked, hoping not to know.  
"Blood."

Toph's hand grew cold, and the paper floated out of her fingers. "Suki? What's going on?"


	17. Love Isn't Everything

**Chapter Sixteen: Love Isn't Everything**

Katara's dead body was seen on the now dark-red Astral Plain, her blood blending into its color. _All_ her dead bodies were on this surface, as far as the eye could see. Aang's mind couldn't possibly fathom the fear he was feeling, it wasn't like anything he had ever seen. He heard Katara's voice say that she was okay, he knew that was her voice, but he heard her other voices, too. All condemning him for his lack of power and broken promises. How they blamed him for their deaths, even though they were the ones that drove the stakes brutally into their hearts. Which one was real, which words were true?

"_You were supposed to save me, Aang. Why? Why are you watching me die? Don't you love me anymore? My heart, Aang. My heart is in so much pain, I can't take it anymore. I don't want it anymore. I just want... I just want to..."_

"_Aang, baby, it's okay. I'm fine, take me back home."_

Those voices repeated over and over in his thoughts, and even his hands that were clasped to the scalp still couldn't bore them away. Those images, those sounds, the stench of reeking flesh all around him...

"_**What are you still doing looking at those ugly effigies? You know that they're not the real thing, your Katara will sound much more graceful in her death, her screams sounding like a wondrous choir. You shouldn't be looking at those."**_

"Give her back," he commanded, feeling some of his resolve pour back into his soul.

"_**Just like that? Where's your sense of adventure? That's no fun, but," **_he waved his hand all the artificial corpses dissipated in a blackish-red vapor, **_"I can show you something else if you wish. Yeah, sure you do. Here, take a look at this. I think you'll like what you see."_**

A hole twisted into his demonic body, contorting his limbs and his face with horrorific ease. When it stopped, the black, omnious hole swirled around the left side of his body, where the heart should have been. There was nothing there, in every conceivable thought of the word. Black was the absence of color, the absence of everything. All Aang could see through that hole was a world of darkness, black leading into black, leading into black, leading into forever.

"_**It's beautiful, isn't it, Aang? This is the embodiment of perfection. Everything comes to an end you see, but, if there is no end to be found, then it can never be over. This is what kills me, this is what makes me live. Without a heart, I am boundless; no limitations of any sort. I have Yangchen to thank for that, despite how much I hate her. You ever wonder, Aang? How can someone hate a person if he has no heart?"**_

Aang was silent from the complexities of his words, unable to answer such an impossible question.

"_**So, you don't know? Interesting... Well, you see, we are all born with a heart, aren't we? Everything we once were slowly becomes ingrained into our souls and those experiences are carried over with us, no matter where the afterlife leads. The thing is, if you're dead, you don't need anything. You can live on for all eternity, freed from the laws of the mortal realm. I've lost something that I've never needed, Avatar. A heart is worthless if you've found what you believe to be true love. That heart longs for it, but once it's found, what's the point? It's already done it's job. I have found the power to discover this love."**_

"Love?" Aang asked, confused, believing that there was no possible way a demon could ever feel such a glorious, passionate thing.

"_**You were never taught about that in the Temples, Avatar? Shameful. One must produce their power to protect their love. Their power can never go beyond their love, and their love beyond their power. It's a hard thing to do. However, with infinite power, there is no need for love. Infinite power gives one all that they could ever need, perfection at its best."**_

"You lie," Aang said with a scowl, "A heart is never worthless. Love never fades away, even if the body dies. That's what makes it beautiful, the limited time that is spent together is lived to the fullest, never having a moment wasted. That's where true power resides. You've corrupted the meaning of the word, twisting your lessons into something that you wanted to hear."

"_**Who are you to tell me what I've done? Since when were you ever there?"**_

"That's a stupid question, Shandar. I was always there. The Avatar's life is always present, the past and future being lived through another. I may be Aang, but I was also Yangchen. She could never forgive you, I can never forgive you. Her experiences are my own, her love, my love. And my Katara, will always be mine, and mine alone. Nobody else can share her, nobody else can love her as much as I. It doesn't matter if one's life ends, love holds no limits, and that person never truly dies."

"_**You're mistaken, fool. You come into my domain, threaten my demons, refute my ideals, and disrespect my knowledge? You know nothing!"**_

The blackhole in Shandar's body widened, engulfing his entire being and filling the space with an eternal blackness, giving an eerie feeling of nonexistance, like one wasn't even there. That thought even crossed Aang's mind, he was alive, right? It felt like he wasn't real, that he wasn't even born. That couldn't be right though, a person who does not exist would not be able to think. So he _had_ to exist, even if he couldn't see his arms, or anything. This wasn't like a black when someone closes their eyes, this was deeper, colder, even sadistic. He could feel the freezing chills, the choking of murderous intent all around, and the mysterious thoughts claiming that he wasn't real or alive.

It was a strange feeling, nothing around him made any sense, and the silence was even worse. A pure silence, at that. Absolutely nothing, no swishing of the air, vaccuuming of depressive void, no echoes when he opened his mouth. It was as if time had stood still, or possibly ended, leaving nothing at all. He floated aimlessly, waiting to hear something, to see something. Just something, anything, even his own voice. Voice? Did he have a voice? Did he even have himself? He had to be real, he just had to be, but why did it feel like he was no longer there? Or anywhere, for that matter? Dead silence. Darkness black as death. This wasn't happening, this couldn't be happening.

"_That's right, Aang. You're still you, and I'm still here. I'm in horrible pain, Aang. I need you to save me, I know that you can save me. I need you, Aang. I'll always need you. I'll always love you. Even if I die, I'll love you until the very end."_

Katara's voice was heard inside his mind, opening his eyes in the black, and his tattoos blowing the vast nothingness away with their blinding light. "No, Katara. You will never die. You'll always be in my heart, you'll always be with me. And I'll always... I'll always love you!" Aang, now glowing and energies radiating off his body, walked some steps forward and stretched out his arm.

"Show yourself, you vile, wretched thing," he said, with the voices of many Avatars under his own, "I know where you are." The outstretched arm closed the hand that was attached to it, and the fingers clamped onto a solid, unseen object. With one squeeze, Shandar was forced out of his invisible shell, and was now bent onto his knee, Aang's powerful grasp refusing to let go of his neck. "Return her, creature. Return my love," Aang said, in a rumbling voice. Shandar tried to escape, but Aang's grip held tight. His spiritual form had it's energies rising up in a fluid, steady stream. "If you know what's good for you, you'll obey me. I'm in control."

"_**Sounds like a threat. What are you going to do? I'm already dead," **_he spoke with telepathy, not opening his fanged mouth.  
Aang smirked at the question. "There are worse things than death."

"_**There is nothing you can do. I've endured this nightmare, and I'll continue to endure it through all eternity. It's like home to me, you see. Nice and cozy."**_

"If you don't give her back, this will only be a child's playground compared to what I will do to you. You're dead, I don't have to hold anything back. I can't kill you, but I'll make you wish that I did." This tone of voice of his, this anger, was nothing like he had ever felt before. He had always tried to resort to violence as a last measure, but there were many times he had to use it. This time, however, was completely different. This Shandar demon was another creature, another being, and the rules in this world were not the same back in reality. His righteous fury allowed him to feel no remorse over such threats, and this thing, was pure evil. He would do whatever he could to stop him.

"_**Are you saying that you have enough power to protect your love? Even after I've taken her away?"**_  
"My love IS my power. Whatever I do, whatever I achieve, it's all meaningless without her."  
"_**If your love is indeed so very strong, why did she forsake you, and come to me?"**_

"_No, Aang. I did not forsake you. I love you."_

"It's because your hatred that was forged over these hundreds of years has decided to infect it. This has always been your fault, and you will fear my strength."  
"_**I. Fear. Nothing," **_Shandar boomed.

"Your eyes tell me differently, even demons can feel fear." Aang Bended a wide ball of air and blasted his captive, still holding him in place through the whole attack. Shandar's form danced and twisted as the compressed air slashed at his body. He actually felt the pain, despite his claim of dominance over Aang. The Avatar by definition held power over both the human and spirit worlds, and he was the only one who could hurt a spiritual being from outside of their world. Shandar knew this, and also expected it, part of him even wanting it to happen. "I'm waiting," Aang said, his glowing eyes striking fear into Shandar.

"_**You're a fun surprise, Airbender."**_ He shapeshifted into a black sludge, slipping through Aang's fingers. The puddle moved backwards, forwards, swayed to the left and right, and every other possible or impossible direction, all in a circular motion.  
"Enough with these games, Shandar. Stop wasting my time."  
Shandar rose out of the puddle, the black slime oozing down his body like his skin was melting. He then grappled Aang, and put him under a choke-hold.

"_**Who's playing? Just because you're here, doesn't mean that you can't die. I could kill the both of you together if that is what you wish. Oh, how much time does she have left, anyways? Who knows? Who cares? Time doesn't mean a thing here."**_

"I care," Aang said, throwing Shandar off of him, "How could I not? You talk about love, but you know nothing of the word. My love for her brought me here, and it'll get me out. I've waited 100 years for someone like her, and I'm not going to lose her like I did my friends in the Temples. She embodies them, she empowers me."

"_**Aww, such a cute and tear-jerking speech. It almost made me cry. No matter what you say, in the end, it all amounts to nothing."**_

"What are you talking about? It never amounts to nothing. Through our feelings, our fights, and our freedoms, we gain a very special thing: a bond that even demons cannot break. Just looking at her allows me to see the glories of each day, of each future day, and I'll cast everything aside only to hold her in my arms! I will never let her go!"

"_Hurry, Aang. I think... I think that I'm starting to die. This pain, it's so dreadful, I can't bear it much longer. I know that you can do this, come back to me."_

"_**Is she talking to you, Aang?" **_Shandar said with a glisten in his eye, **_"Is she pleading for her life? Is her voice precious, perfect, to your ears? Do you think her dying screams will sound just as lovely? Do you wish to find out, to hear her one last time?"_**  
"I'll always hear her, there is no, 'last time.' There will never be one final time. She is with me, I am with her. We are joined as one together, and nothing that you can ever do will change that."

"_Aang, I'm growing cold. Where are you? Baby, I need your touch. I don't want to lose you."_

"Katara, you will never lose me. I made a promise. I intend to keep it; I'm bringing you back tonight."  
"_**Eh? How can you be so certain, human? You've becomed exiled here forever." **_Shandar punched Aang and stretched his hand inside the body, twisting and pulling, causing Aang great pain. The spiritual form in this world was unusual, how could this arm be moving inside of him? Air collected and concentrated around his palm and just like Yangchen, he tapped into her Invisible Blade technique and severed Shandar's arm, releasing him from the agonizing clutch.

"I don't believe that," Yangchen and Aang spoke together, "I came in here, I'm going out. You can't stop me." Aang's single voice returned and his eyes shined a color like never before, "For the last time, show me my wife! I'm taking back my Katara!"

"_Save me, Aang! Now!"_

"_**Your love is flawed. There is no sense in loving something that eventually fades away. You claim that she never will, but look at her; she's going to die. If perfection no longer needs anything, then that nothing is the definition of perfection. She will become as nothing, forever locked inside these walls, having a desire for nothing. You'll lose her just like Yangchen lost her Sangmu. You're pathetic! Worthless! Ideals like those are lost within the grave."**_

With that, Shandar clapped his hands together and brought forth the real Katara with a loud boom, suspended in the air with her arms spread out like she was on a cross. Her head was hung low, and blood from her upper torso was dripping down, landing inches away from Aang. He was relieved to finally see her, but at the same time, was held aghast at her very sight. She was bleeding, she wasn't a spirit just yet, but, but... she was bleeding. "Katara!" Aang screamed, reaching his hand out to her, but still remaining on the ground. Her head lifted up slightly at the sound of her name, but it dropped back down, she didn't have enough strength to keep it there. Her blood that continually poured from her wounds, had their droplets stop in mid-air, like time had stopped for only them.

"What have you done to her?" Aang cried out, his voice deepening.

"_**What? Are you stupid, or something? I'm killing her. I've said that she should be enshrined forever, no? This is how. She'll disperse into the air and stay here for all eternity. Knowing nothing, needing nothing. Perfect in every way. I'll show her what I tried to show Yangchen."**_

"You won't be showing her a damn thing, I'm taking her back. Now." Aang flew up into the air and punched Shandar in the face with some Bended fire held in the fist. Shandar's face distorted and melted, and the attack sent him flying to the ground, breaking through the desolate terrain. "Stand up, I'm not finished yet," Aang said, now having his anger rise, being fed by the negative and brutal feelings of this world.

"_**You wish to end me, Aang?" **_Shandar said, cracking his jaw and fixing his face. The words snapped Aang back into his regular state of mind. "No, but I wish to end _this._" Before Shandar realized, Aang had automatically transferred himself from the air to right in front of him, where he stood. He Bended the earth, or this world's equivalent to it, and held Shandar tightly into place. "You know, demon," Aang said, with that last word echoing, "I am glad that you cannot die. You've caused too much pain to just have it end so easily. I know exactly what to do with you."

"_**Hmm? You may want to rethink that, weakling. Take a look behind you and see what I am doing."**_

Aang's Avatar State diminished as he turned around and witnessed Katara phasing in and out of existence. "Katara!" He shouted, hoping in some odd and strange logic, that it'd bring her back. "You... Shandar, what are you doing to her? Stop it!" Aang said those words, with his eyes still attached to Katara and as he turned around to face the demon, he was gone.

* * *

Hakoda ran his fingers through his daughter's hair and sighed. Gran-Gran knelt by her side, and held her hand. The others were around her bed, and also keeping their focus on Aang's phsyical body. "Katara, you're a beautiful girl, just like your mother. Come back to us, okay? I can't lose you, too," Hakoda said, with tears in his eyes. It'd been a while since Aang had left, but nobody was truly able to give the time or tell how long. Staring at a person who could quite possibly be already dead takes a lot out of someone, and every thought in their head would be focused on what they could see in front of them. Hakoda's stare was broken once Gran-Gran brought something to his attention, her voice filled with dread as her hands were released from Katara's.

"Hakoda... Look, her hand is see-through. She's fading away."


	18. Just to Have Your Touch

**Chapter Seventeen: Just to Have Your Touch**

"_**You see that? She's dying, she's leaving you. What do you say about love, now?"**_

Aang didn't have time to combat words with the demon, he teleported himself in front of Katara and hugged her with all his might. Her blood soaked his skin, and her eyes were closed. "Kat, come on girl, wake up. I'm here now, okay? I'm taking you back, look at me. Come on." He gently tapped the side of her face and her eyes opened very slowly. "A-Ang? That's you, right? You're actually here?"  
"Yes, I am." Before he could say anything else, Shandar came back and appeared behind Katara, his hands on her shoulders and his mouth close to her ears."  
"_**No, he is not. You're only seeing things, you're mine now, girl. You're the catalyst of my revenge to both Sangmu and Yangchen. Just take it and die."**_

Shandar then moved himself over Aang, and covered his entire body in black. "What's this? Get me out of here! What's wrong with you?"  
"_**Nothing. Remember? I am perfect. I am immortal."**_

Aang couldn't do a thing as he fell onto the burnt soil, still covered with the black. He tried to rip it off just like he was tearing at his own flesh, but it would always grow back, and become heavier until it finally halted him, curled into a ball. "Aang!" he heard Katara scream.

"_Aang? What are you doing?" _Yangchen's voice came inside his head, while he was still trapped in the dark void.  
"_I'm trying to get out of here," _Aang responded, only able to speak his words through his mind.  
"_What are you waiting for, then? You don't hear her crying out your name?"_  
"_I can hear it, but I can't escape. This place... it's so cold and disturbing. Depressing. What's he doing to me? I don't like this, it's making me feel so very weak."_  
"_He wants you dead, just like he wants Katara dead. Save her, Aang. Don't you love her?"_  
"_You know I do. Just... just don't tell me to do the impossible," _he said, Shandar's net around him draining his emotions.

"_Aang, what is it that you are calling impossible? What happened to your resolve? You came this far, don't you dare give up now, not when she's finally looking at you. I told him, Aang. I told him that no matter how many lifetimes it would take, that I'd always be ready for him. You know what to do, I've given you the knowledge. And we're all giving you our power. Rise up, Aang. You've said it yourself..."_

"We share a bond that not even demons can break. I'll cast everything aside for her, empty everything I ever had, just to have her in those arms. I'll never leave her. I'll never let her go," Aang voiced, feeling the darkness around him lift as he stood to his feet. With a wave of his right hand, whatever was around him dissipated, and he could hear Shandar screech in torment from the activity. Aang's tattoos began to glow once more, entering him into the Avatar State, and this time, much stronger than he had ever been. "Hands off," he said, echoing with the voices of all the Avatars.

Shandar only moved closer to her, his now putrid mouth close to her neck and his claw-like hands inching their way down her skin. His eyes locked onto Aang's and he smiled. _**"Try to stop me, then. If you're anything like Yangchen, you'll wait until this girl is dead before doing anything. I knew she was there the whole time, Avatar. Frozen in fear, watching her mentor die, nearly dying herself knowing that she'd have to kill me. For such a coward, she sure surprised me. Will you do the same? I'm thinking that you will, you have no power here."**_

Without a response, Aang shot a glance at Shandar, and the intimidation behind it released the hold he kept on Katara. His trembling hands were a few inches above her skin, and Aang took advantage of the opportunity with righteous fury. He moved with blinding speed and clamped onto Shandar's arms with his hands, the fingernails boring down as far as possible. Aang's hold was so strong, that Shandar couldn't do anything this time around, it was nothing like he expected.

"_**Get off of me, you worthless being. I hate you, you don't deserve to live, and she needs to die."**_

"No. She needs to be with me," Aang growled, eyes burning with holy rage, untainted by his surroundings for the first time. "Your mind games are growing old, demon. I'll make sure that you'll never disturb us or anyone ever again." Before he was able to do anything, Katara screamed at that very moment. Her body began to fade in and out again, and when she faded, the scream was silenced. When she faded back in, it was the loudest Aang had ever heard.

"_**She's a strong girl, Aang. Any other would have been killed long before now. She's dying, you can't save her, you can't do anything. All the pretty speeches and powerful words on the planet will never change that. Just step aside, weakling. Drink her in, behold it all, watch her die."**_

"Aang!" Katara wailed, her pain increasing and the wound opening, pouring some more of her blood. The wound now looked like a blackhole swirling inside of her, just like Shandar's. If Aang didn't hurry, she'd be trapped in that eternal solemn black, like he had suffered. Only, for her, there would be no way out. "Hang in there, Katara! Please, endure it a little longer, okay? I'll get you out, I'll take you back, and I'll never let you escape from my arms ever again."

"_**Pathetic. You know nothing, you're stuck here forever. Give up! It's not that hard, all you have to do is close your eyes. It's all pointless from here. Taste the revenge I have longed for through the centuries. You will know it, you will feel it, and she will be killed from it. Not much time left, monk. Better hurry if you want to say your last goodbye."**_

Shandar, still in Aang's grasp, tried moving again, but was unable to budge. For some reason, that made him display a wicked grin, like part of him enjoyed feeling the hatred inside of Aang. "Wipe that smirk off your face, Shandar. It's not twisted by your wickedness, this is all in love. She is my power, she is my everything. I will not allow you to strip her away from me."

Aang threw him far away from Katara and reappeared in front of him, hands on his face. "I will imprison you here, Shandar. You won't be able to move or speak, staying far, far away from the real world. You will have no influence there whatsoever, I will finish what Yangchen started." Aang held Shandar in place with one arm and touched his forehead with the other free hand. His index finger was placed in the middle of Shandar's temple, and Aang's energy that flowed around him changed from blue to a golden light. "You learned a primitive form of Spiritbending in order to accomplish what you are now, Yangchen told me. However, you do not understand the true power behind it. That is why..."

The shining golden light was released from Aang's finger and before it could have any effect, every Avatar that had ever lived were summoned, all circling around. Yangchen stood by Aang's side, and the rest had their arms lifted, and all glowing in the same light. "Are you ready, Aang?" Yangchen asked him, "Can you finish this, finally passing judgement onto him?"  
"I will not go back on my word. Not that time hundreds of years ago, and not now. I am ready for him, I will end this battle that has lasted over my past lifetimes."  
"You are right, and we will do this together, I still consider him my enemy."

Yangchen's finger was now placed onto Shandar's head, and the demon's eyes were wide with fear, gazing upon the face of the one who killed him, and the faces all around, proving the dominance of each and every Avatar. "Be condemned here forever, Shandar," all of them spoke together, "You will never be free, you will suffer an eternity of nothingness."

Aang's and Yangchen's hands on Shandar's head illuminated a golden color, filling his whole demonic form with the light. _**"What are you doing? You cannot..." **_his words faded as he jolted back from the pain. "This is the true form of Spiritbending, Shandar. Where one's spirit can be controlled by another. It is because you attempted this, that you're now at its mercy. Become swallowed and drowned inside your own misery, inside your own existence. Be gone."

Shandar's body, still golden, curled into a shining ball, and a black void was created from under of it. With a final scream of malice, Shandar was locked into the very solemn void that he had created; forever living in a dimension of nothingness, wondering if he was even there or alive. The Avatars disappeared and Aang looked into the eyes of Yangchen.

"Thank you, Yangchen. You were able to help me defeat him."  
"Aang, we are one, remember? It is because of you that you were able to defeat him. You and your wondrous love for Katara. You'd better hurry, there isn't much of her left."  
"Yeah, I know."

Yangchen gave a wide smile filled with a great joy before going away, and Aang gave one in return. He moved his spiritual body back to where Katara was, and held the sides of her cheeks with his hands. She became solid at his touch, translucent, but not altogether gone. "Kat, we're going home."

"Aang... I... I knew that you could..." she responded, exhausted from being away from her body for so long and living through not only the pain that Shandar inflicted on her; but the cold, cold world that she was now in. Aang knew that even though the battle was over, she wouldn't be able to make it back on her own, no human could. No living soul should even be in this place, it was a supernatural experience. Aang saw some tears running down her face, and he didn't know if it was from her pain, or happiness. Quite possibly even both. He wiped one away, but her body began to fade again.

"Aang, hurry," Katara said, her voice barely above a gentle whisper.  
"Babe, what are you doing crying? I told you we'd return. Everything's fine." Aang kissed his gorgeous wife on the lips, and her disappearing body now came back to normal, the two of them being surrounded by a glorious blue aura. The light transported them out of the spirit world, and back into the world of the living. Katara's soul was gently placed back into her body as Aang carried her, and after she was back inside, he moved back into his own.

"Unnnh..." Katara said, holding her head as she arose from the bed. Before she could do anything else, or even open her eyes half-way, Hakoda grappled her with a most loving hug. "Katara! You're back! You're alive!" he shouted and cried, his head resting on her shoulders. Still a bit out-of-touch with reality after coming back, it took her a few seconds to actually register what was going on. "Dad?" she said, rubbing her eyes and taking a breath. "What's going on?" _Oh! That's right! I remember! I was... and Aang was..._

"Daddy!" She exclaimed, and then looked around the room, "Pakku! Gran-Gran! What... what are you all doing here? How did you know?"  
"You've been gone for days, Katara," Kanna said, "We stayed here and kept watch over you two, just as Aang wanted."  
"Aang! Where's Aang?" Katara said, frantically searching the room, looking for him. She saw him seated on the floor, but something was covering his clothing.

"Ack! What? What is this?" Aang said, spreading his arms out trying to shake the dry mess off."  
"Aang," Pakku said, "You'd be better off not knowing what that stuff is. I advise you get washed up and changed."  
Aang made a face advertising his disgust at the thought of what was on him, and ran into the bathroom, agreeing with what Pakku had told him. Kanna took Katara by the hands and brought her close, wanting a hug. "I don't know what happened, dear, but don't ever leave us again. You're going to give this old lady a heart-attack. I still have a few years left in me, I don't want to give them up, got it?"

"Heh, only a few, Gran-Gran? I'm sure you'll be around for a while. You don't have to worry, Aang promised he'd never let me slip out of his hands again. Spirits, demons, or anything else; they do not hold the strength to break our bonds or tear us apart."  
"And I believe it, Katara. I'm just so glad you have returned."

Katara smiled, but when she looked over to the locked bathroom door and back to them, "Umm, guys?"  
"Yes?" they all more or less said around the same time.  
"I'm fine now, but could you please..."  
"HA! I know what's going on," Hakoda said, "You want us out, huh? Rather be spending your time with Aang, yes?"

Katara blushed only for a second, and then gave a nod with a smile. "Well, he saved me, and I love you all, but with him, I think I'd rather spend this night alone in his arms."  
"Heh, well, alright, we'll leave," Pakku said, conceding to what Katara wanted. Pakku, Kanna, and Hakoda, all said their goodbyes and Katara produced a small tear, glad to see them all again.

"Hurry up, Aang," Katara said, redressing herself, "I want to spend the rest of this night feeling your touch."

* * *

"What do you want with us, Azula! Why do you have my Mom and Dad?" Toph yelled, standing in the Mayor's office, wanting to kill them all, but knew it would guarantee the death of her parents, as she could make out the vibrations and figures of Azula, her guards, her parents, and the swords around her. Azula only smiled, and made a small flame by snapping her fingers. At the sound, a beaten, and bloody Sokka was thrown onto the floor, rolling close to Toph. "What...?" she said, shocked and confused.

"If you think _that's_ bad, you should see what I did with the others," Azula said, laughing her head off.  
"Azula, if you didn't have those men on my family... I'd totally kick your bloody ass," Toph said quietly, trying to release her anger and frustration, but also careful as to not jeopardize her mom and dad.  
"Hmm?" Azula responded, "You would, huh? I'd love to see you try. Hell, why not even give it a shot?" she jumped down from atop the staircase and lifted the short Toph off the ground with one hand, using the strength only a mad person could possess. "Here's your chance, girl. Show me what you've got." Azula held her in place and Bended a fireball in the palm of her free hand.


	19. Side by Side

**Chapter Eighteen: Side by Side**

Ursa sat down at the table in the Fire Nation Capitol's war room, and greeted both Iroh and Firelord Zuko, who were already there. "It's confirmed," Iroh said, taking a sip of his tea, "Azula is in Gaoling and has taken the Bei Fong family hostage. She fled from her prison cell some days ago, and this current news is only recent, the city had a horrible time getting a message out from the apparent attack and slaughters."

"Azula needs to be stopped before she kills anyone else!" Zuko gave a shout, slamming his fist onto the table. That saddened Ursa; the anger she felt from his words, and the sorrow she felt from the truth. "My sister... she's become a monster. I was hoping that she'd come back a gentle person, but she's worse off than before. Her mind and thoughts have been completely shattered."  
"It's still my fault, Zuko. After all these years," Ursa confessed, still holding the pain inside her heart from so long ago.  
"Mother! No! You did the best you could! This is all her fault, no one else's. I won't believe what you said for a second, this is all on her. Somehow, she must be stopped."

Iroh joined back into the conversation, "Zuko, we still don't for sure what exactly is going on. We only know that she has taken the Bei Fongs, and that this information is relatively new. She must be working under someone, I doubt her twisted head would have come up with this alone. We must be very careful, here. Besides, we've already sent out the Kiyoshi Warriors. They'll take care of the situation."  
"If so, Uncle, then why haven't they? Surely, we would have learned some good news by now if they had any. Something's horribly wrong, and I don't like it."  
"What about the Avatar?" Ursa asked, knowing that her daughter would be safe if he came.  
"He still resides in the Northern Water Tribe, our summons would take a while to reach him and also, I'm really not sure he'd be there when it came. Haven't heard from him in so long, and he's always going around the Nations trying to stabilize order."

"Then why hasn't he learned of the events in Gaoling, Zuko?" Ursa asked him, prying for an answer.  
"I don't know. We should send a message out, even though it may take some time before he receives it." Zuko, for some reason, seemed a bit hesitant on the idea, recalling the past history Aang had with Azula.

"Zuko," Iroh said, placing his hand on the Firelord's shoulder, "Your men hate her, the Fire Nation hates her, if we send them, there's a great possibility that they'd kill her on sight, regardless of your orders. Also a greater chance that she'd kill them all first before they could do anything. I'm afraid that waiting for the Avatar would be the wisest decision here. There isn't much you can do."  
"What are you talking about, Uncle? The two of us could stop her! You know how much power we both acquired after the war! We are stronger than we were back then!"

"Zuko, I never said that we wouldn't go. We _should_ go. However, if Azula is working with someone else, there is no telling what could be waiting for us. The more the better, and this whole Nation wishes her dead, some even lost respect for you since you have kept her alive all this time. Who else could we turn to? We must go along with the Avatar."

"Very well, I'll see to it that we deliver the message personally, on my fastest ship. Mother," he said, turning towards her, "I want you to come with us, too. Something in my heart tells me that you'll be needed, and I'm sure somewhere inside my disturbed sister is a girl who actually wants to see you."

"Thank you, son. I truly feel like I need to do something."  
"So, Firelord Zuko, when do we leave?" Iroh asked, removing his pipe and smiling.  
"If at all possible, this evening. Get your things together, we'll leave as soon as you're ready."

Iroh saw the look of fear and worry in Zuko's face, and he helped Ursa out of her seat. "Let's go, Miss Ursa, we had better get ready." He winked at her and silently hinted that her son needed to be left alone, and she walked out of the room, walking by Iroh's side. Zuko stayed in his seat, falling into a blank stare at the wall, reliving his past experiences through his memory, and trying to devise a plan on what to do in the present. He had defeated her before, but it was a very close battle, and without Katara there, he probably would have died. True, he had gotten much stronger since then, but there was no telling how much power Azula also held. Becoming mad over the years can really affect a person's being, and the strength of the insane was just as bad or even worse as the person using it. She'd have no reservation in using her power, no reason to hold back. A permanent resolution could be made by ending her life, but he really didn't want to do that. He still wanted his sister to return, and become his close friend.

He sighed and slammed his head on the desk, then kept it there, closing his eyes and going into a self-induced trance, trying to clear his mind. He was jolted awake by the feel of two fair and smooth hands on his shoulders. He turned around to discover who it was, and smiled at her sight. "Hey, Mai. You could have come in, you know. Why'd you refuse? We may have needed your input."

"Zuko," she said, agitated already, "You know what I would have said. I want that disgusting person dead, and I really don't care how it's done. Shoot her, behead her, throw her off a cliff, even drown her. Anything, it doesn't matter to me at all. She deserves to die, Zuko. After all she's done, and almost killing you, there isn't a fiber in my body that still wishes her alive."

"Mai..."  
"Your father should be killed too, Zuko. I don't get you at all."  
"I had no control over that at the time, Mai. That's why he's kept in that tower."  
"Yes, but still, we keep anyone alive who deserves death?"  
"Mai, using that logic, I should be killed, too. I've done some terrible things in my selfish search for the Avatar, and I know you've done some as well."

"But they were deserved! I never hurt the innocent!"  
"I have..." Zuko said, with a lowered head.  
"Zuko, I..." Mai said, trying to figure out what to say, but emotions were never her thing.

"It's alright, Mai. Aang taught me a lot about life and honor, _true_ honor. He believed that no matter how evil the person, they still deserved to live, and he had no right in taking that away from them. I don't know if he considered that as a second chance, because I know he never wanted to see Ozai again, but his belief affected me, and I've tried to respect it. Trust me, I will do whatever needs to be done, but if possible, I'd like to keep that person alive. Anger and rage never solves anything. We both know what happens when those emotions take over."

Mai walked behind him and wrapped her arms around his neck, putting her head on his shoulders. "I don't understand what you're doing, Lover, and I think emotions are stupid, but for me, you've taken my heart and what little care there is in there. I strongly disagree with what you're doing, but for some dumb reason, I kind of understand why you want it. I want her dead, worse than dead, but..."

"Mai?" Zuko said, as she tightened her arms around his waist, "I also want what you want."  
They engaged in a long kiss and when it was over, the both of them smiled at each other. "Come along, Mai. Help us."

"No way, Zuko. I swear, if I came, the moment I saw that vile piece of... I would cut her throat, and let her horrid cold blood stain my blade and the ground. I can never forgive her. Ever. I'm still mad at you because you somehow think that she could be saved, but whatever. Do what you want. I'm outta here."

She walked out of the room and locked herself in her room when she got there. Zuko gave another sigh and left the meeting area himself, about to get ready for the trip ahead.

* * *

"Where's your voice now, little girl?" Azula insulted, as Toph was lifted off the floor. "You can't even see me, now can you? Ha! You can't see a thing! Hmm, I don't know? I have this fireball in my other hand here, how about I use it to brighten up your vision just a tad?"

Sokka dragged his bleeding and broken body across the floor and reached out his arm, trying to protect his Toph. He mad an inaudible sound, trying to speak out, but his voice was soft and blood spewed forth. He toppled over after that, head hitting the floor and arm spread out onto the surface, pointing towards Toph. He couldn't do anything for her, not in this condition, and not after what had happened to him. He promised. He promised that he'd protect her. That he'd protect _all_ of them.

After reading that bloodstained letter, they were forced to come to the Mayor's building. Upon arrival, Azula made sure that everything and everyone had been placed on the stone floor, solely for Toph's 'convenience.' Lao and Poppy were chained, and although Toph could have Bended their metals, there was honestly very little that she _actually_ could do at the time; with Azula herself standing in between them, and all the Benders and guardsmen around.

Sokka remembered that he was about to charge, when Azula heated the palms of her hands and shoved them into both Lao and Poppy's abdomen. Their screams were unbearable, like two lobsters being boiled alive, after having ripping each other apart with their claws. Their sounds made Toph want to hold her ears, close her ears, but one arm was still in that metal splint, hanging like a sideways 'L.' Instead of silencing what she was hearing, all she could do was cry before yelling at the very top of her lungs. "STOP IT!" Those words grabbed Azula's attention, and she responded with her sly, demonic smile, enough to give anyone nightmares.

"Oh-ho! The little brat speaks! And she's brought her idiot lover and a small militia along with her," she said, scouring the group, and noticing the Kiyoshi Warriors, but paying them no mind. "What am I going to do now, huh? There's just so many of you, keep this up, and I may actually be frightened." She displayed a haughty and dominant smirk, and shifted her gaze onto the hardened metal around Toph's arm, having it bracing the appendage. "Oh? He-he. That's a nice accessory that you have on, there. I wonder how it would feel if I melted it right on your skin, wouldn't that be nice? Might even give it a new color, too."

"No!" Toph shouted, removing the tears in her eyes with her free hand, "I want my family back! Why are you doing this? You're insane!" At those words, Azula gave a grin that struck the utmost fear into everyone inside the room, even those who were her guards. Toph could not see the smile, but she could feel the freezing cold, and the murderous emotions behind it.  
"Insane? What are you talking about? I've always been this way. Only now, it's just getting better."

All these images flashed through Sokka's head as he was crippled on the floor. Azula still had Toph in the air, holding her by her shirt, and seeing the fear in her eyes brought back those past memories of what had happened next.

"Enough!" Suki had exclaimed, drawing her bladed fans. She knew that Sokka was fearful of Azula burning Lao and Poppy again, but she had to do something. Yeah, she just had to. She _wanted _to. A part of her was still and always would be connected to Sokka, and everything within her screamed out, "Do something! Come on!"

Azula looked over to her, but blatantly ignored her as she began to focus in on Ty Lee and start the conversation. "Oh? Ty Lee? How's the circus these days? Still playing with all of these clowns?" she said, pointing to each and every one of the Kiyoshi Warriors, jumping her index finger, like it was some child's game.

"Azula! You're mean! Worse than mean!" Ty Lee scolded, preparing her stance.  
"Oh, am I?" she said, raising her upper lip and squinting her eyes, "Mmm, perhaps? I never noticed. Like I care, really. You're all getting on my nerves, just die."

The next thing Sokka knew, was that everything went black after hearing a loud explosion mixed with the splashing of blood and a cacophony of dying screams. And then the steel, the bitter-cold metallic objects being pierced into his flesh before fading away into a sleep. Upon waking up, he saw what was now in front of him. He looked around the room, and saw that both Suki and Ty Lee were alive, but were also chained to the back wall, hanging unconscious only by their wrists, and wearing their tattered and bloodstained armor in some type of sick display. He didn't know where Sen or the others were, maybe dead, maybe not. All he knew was that they were in trouble, and he was, as well.

Azula was trying to make a point by chaining his friends, and she had definitely succeeded. He had a romantic history with both Ty Lee and Suki, and now he wasn't able to defend or protect either one of them. Ty Lee was a very fun girl, but after a while, they just drifted off into being good friends. Suki, on the other hand, had _always_ been a different matter. He always felt like she was the Yue he lost, and that only made him want her more. Over the time they had dated, they shared many pleasant and unpleasant memories, all working together, making them stronger. He had always pushed any romantic thought about Toph aside during that time, and when those two finally broke up, Sokka felt like he had lost Yue yet once again. Perhaps that was the reason he went from girl to girl after breaking up with her, but he always knew that he was looking for something, and none of those girls had it. Even when he analyzed it right down to the very core, not even Suki possessed what he was truly looking for.

It was impossible to forget about those two, and Azula herself, had a few grudges that she'd never be able to get rid of. He wasn't able to protect them, like he always said that he would; leave it to a guy to claim something and then fall short of desired goal. He couldn't even speak a single word, or even a sound, to save his truest love. Her connection over the years, even though he had been away from her for so very long, had gradually grown stronger day by day and now, finally, they were both able to discover what they thought they had always knew; a deep, passionate, intimate love, that they both had waited for, finally filling that gape in their hearts and souls.

Azula was doing her very best to wear him down, and it was working. Or, maybe she was trying to wear Toph down? Maybe she didn't even know, or much less care. Why? Why was all of this happening? It was just...  
"Crazy!" Toph said, still in the clutches of her captor, "Let me go! Let me go! What do you want? This is so stupid! Put me down so I can drive a spike through your stomach! Come on!"

Azula moved her burning hand close to Toph's L-shaped splint, and she could feel the heat. Any closer, and the metal would begin to melt, permanently ruining the skin that she wanted only Sokka to see. Azula pulled the hand away and within an instant, threw a light fiery punch into Toph's stomach, sending her flying onto the floor, and breaking the skin on her head as she landed. On her knees and one hand to the floor, Toph spat out a few droplets of blood and winced from her burning pain.

"I don't have to kill you yet, _P__rincess._ You're very lucky, I hope you know. We need your family's power and wealth to control all trade routes out of this city straight into the heart of the Earthen Kingdom, Ba Sing Se. Seems a bit unoriginal, I tend to agree, but, a full scale head-on attack on the wall would be a very, very foolish idea. I may have lost my mind," she said, starting to sway, "But I've regained my forgotten past, and still hate you all. My father wants this, he says that he loves me. Finally! I'm loved! Mother didn't care, Zuzu didn't care, and as for you..." she shot a fire arrow close to Toph's face, and it dissipated into the air upon its collision onto the stoned floor.

"I don't care about you. About any of you. As soon as we are done with your parents, blind girl, I'll kill them in front of you, and then slowly, pleasurably take my time in killing you. Anyone who stands in my way should be cut in half and burned."

Without thinking, Azula had thrown Toph onto the floor, where she'd be able to use it as a weapon. Her mind was very unstable now, she could have even wanted Toph to attack her. Whatever the reason, Toph rumbled the earth beneath her and hurled a boulder to where Azula stood. To her surprise, Azula just stood there, taking the direct hit. Her face was bleeding, her left arm was bleeding, she looked like a monster; some type of demon who had been bathed in blood, and still wanted more.

"I'm bleeding, Toph. Do you know why I'm bleeding?"  
"Why? You stupid, or something! You frickin' stood there! You bet you'd be bleedin'!"  
"Oh, really? So, is that what this is? Interesting..." her voice and thoughts faded off into some unknown distance and while she was occupied, Sokka finally stood to his feet, thus summoning the protests of Toph. "Sokka! You fool! You can barely stand! I can hear your blood dripping all over the place! And, I can hear inside of you, too! Your heart, you dang idiot! Stop, you don't wanna do anything stupid, okay?" Toph smacked him back down onto the floor and threatened him, telling him to stay there.

"You can't do a thing right now, Sokka! I'll protect you!" Toph said, regaining balance. Sokka's next answer threw her completely off guard. "That's not how it works, Toph. I don't protect you, you don't protect me. We protect each other. Together."

"What?"

"I failed to protect all of you. Toph, I really want to rise and be the man, protecting all my girls, but, you can take care of your own, and I'll be there to help battle the problem with you, not lock you miles away from it. So don't you try to lock me away, either."  
"So, are you saying..."  
"We fight side by side and when one of us is down, the other stands in front of them, defending from all harm, and from anyone who would try to tear us apart."

"Aww, isn't this just so sweet and sickening?" Azula said, spitting onto the floor, "Well, Toph, you'd better protect that worthless boy of yours, I think I might finish him off. I don't give a crap about that idiot, I have to keep you alive, but no one told me in what condition you had to be." She walked closer, and Toph moved the floor, knocking her over.

"Don't you even dare. I'm not letting you touch him, only **I** can touch him! He is mine, no one else's, and we fight together, no matter how impossible the battle may seem." Toph formed her Chu Gar Southern Praying Mantis stance, and actually taunted Azula by signaling her closer. "You won't lay a hand on him, Azula. He's risked his life for me so many times, so I want to do the same. Oh, wait..." she said, smililng with her usual sarcasm, "You're not allowed to kill me yet, are you? I don't care what happens to me, and even with one arm, I'll beat you into submission!"

"Oh, really? Are you sure about that?" Azula cackled, having many Earth and Firebenders enter into the room. "Don't get carried away, brat. Remember that your parents are still here."


	20. Hell's Latest Flame

**Chapter Nineteen: Hell's Latest Flame**

"You're a fool, Zuko! She'll never be like that!" Zuko recalled Mai telling him, as he looked over the waves during the trip to the Northern Tribe. He didn't want to travel all this way to only _maybe_ find the Avatar. There was no telling what Azula was doing, but as his uncle had told him, "The two of us will not be able to defeat her if she is not working on her own. No one trusts her here, or anywhere else, so we basically have no choice."

Yeah, that was probably true but, that burning and raging fire inside of him wanted to prevent what they were doing right now. He clenched his fist, with some fire Bending inside, and then released it, trying to control his anger. This was a waste of time, he feared what was happening to the people, and what the main plot of her disappearance was. All they had to work with was that almost trivial amount of information that they were lucky enough to produce. The oddest thing was that _all_ of this was taking place in Gaoling. They had some small problems in the past after the war, but then again, every Nation and land were having troubles, even those who were never a part of the war to begin with. That wasn't anything out of the ordinary, but could they have been a part of something much bigger? Gaoling wasn't a landmark city, it was only a small place, but some of the highest and most influential persons resided there, and with their wealth, at that.

Maybe that was a reason, but why was it Gaoling? It wasn't like it was Ba Sing Se or Omashu.

It was only a small part of the Earthen Kingdom, and it would be insignificant in many ways except that it still held some major trade routes to the cities, and some very prosperous citizens. Whatever the reason, it didn't make any sense that any of this would be happening now, so long after the war. Azula wasn't acting like herself anyways, and even though he had no idea how she escaped, she was up to something, no matter how far gone her mind was.

Zuko sighed and lowered his head to see the coming dusk's reflection on the water. Again, Mai's voice came back into his head from their last conversation before he left. "You're wasting your time with her, you idiot. Know that? She's hopeless! She deserves to die and nothing less! I hate her so much, Zuko. I usually don't care about anything, but she's gone too far, even now. Still mad at you for forcing me to watch her that one day, I almost killed her then. The _only_ thing stopping me from that was your request. If you never said anything, we wouldn't be worrying about her now! She's sick and twisted! I'm not going, unless of course you want her dead. I don't care how much power she has, understand? I'll slit that damn throat of hers the next time I see her."

"Mai..." Zuko said to himself, coming back to the present, "I really don't know why I want to save her, part of me wants her dead too, but... I really hope that you're wrong, and that I can save her. Mom's here with us now, and maybe, just maybe... Upon seeing her, that might spark something that has been lost inside of her all these years." _Or, it could make her snap even farther, I'm really taking a gamble here, but Mom really wanted to help. If this doesn't work, well, we probably won't have that wedding..._

With a long saddened face, Ursa pulled away from her current talk with Iroh to look at her son. She stood still, either not knowing what to say, or not wanting to walk over there. All her emotions were meshed into one cloudy feeling, so she couldn't tell which one, or even what to think. Her daughter, Azula, the reason they were doing this, somehow believed that she was never loved. Ursa always loved her, but perhaps it was true she paid some more attention to Zuko since he was always belittled by both his father and sister. She felt sorry for him, and Azula was always causing trouble. As much as she loved her, Zuko was always easy to get along with, while Azula was only fine when she was either with her father or training. That was another reason she spent more time with Zuko, his Bending was never as good as Azula's, and she teased him because of it, sometimes even getting stronger just to spite him. Zuko hated that, and hated that his father would never acknowledge him, not even his grandfather. It was all about Azula, every single day. That's why Ursa spent time with him, instead of trying to pay equal attention to both. Azula even had a nickname for her brother, one that he hated so much because it always sounded condescending; Zuzu. She'd always call him that, and then rub it in his face that she was better than him and that father didn't think highly of him. The sad thing was, it was true. That's why Ursa made sure he felt loved by at least her, but in turn, it made Azula feel like she never loved her. Besides which, Ozai wasn't much of a role model to begin with, so even his attention to her was questionable. He only cared about himself and position, and he tricked her into thinking that he actually cared for her whenever he thought she'd be able to farther his empire. Zuko was a failure from the start, or so he thought.

Ursa could remember when Zuko was born, he nearly died back then, and by all odds, should have. It was close, and the only thing that saved his life was her pleading with Ozai to keep him alive. He thought he was worthless right off the bat, not even being able to survive birth. A weakling. The small part of mercy and compassion he had saved his life, with a distant hope that this _thing, _this child that was considered his _son_ would actually be of some use to him later on in life. He'd always tell him that he was lucky to be born, only wearing him down on purpose, seeing if he could survive his poisoned words. If he couldn't even stand strong from meaningless words, he'd never make it as a warrior. Ursa hated that, with every part of her being. She felt so sorry for him, wanting to make sure he felt loved by at least someone, and by her, if nobody else.

That spawned another memory, a dark one that she had tried so hard to forget, but her conscious and guilt never allowed her to.  
"You don't love me! You never did! Why? Why do you always spend time with Zuzu and always scold me? What's wrong with you? I hate you!" Azula yelled at her, crying the entire time. She looked so desperate, and that could have been the moment when she began to lose her mind. She was never the same after that, and soon after, Zuko's life was on the line. Again. She had to do what she did, and even though she saved his life, it had driven Azula over the edge, since she never returned and had only said farewell to him. Even though Ursa had no control over what another person did, something always dominated her, telling her that this was her fault. That _all_ of this was her fault. Those years in solitude with those slave traders made things worse, going from master to master, back to the caravan, and obliging to anything they told her. _Anything. _It was horrible, by every means of the word, and knowing that when she last left Azula, she hated her, and that only made things worse. And at times, that pain hurt more than anything else that happened to her.

She had suffered for too long, and still did even now. She opened her mouth and lifted her hand up to speak, but closed it with a small wheezing breath, filled with pain. She then closed her eyes and turned her head away, until Iroh put his hand under her chin and lifted it up. "What's bothering you, Ursa? Why does your heart trouble you so?"

She remained silent, turning her eyes away yet once again. She wanted to tell him, she really did, but she just couldn't. It was like everything she ever wanted to say was right there, ready to be released, but the lock on the cage was impossible to find. Or, more closer to the truth, that key was right there in the palm of her hand, but it was paralyzed, unable to place it inside. Iroh knew exactly what was going on, anybody who knew anything about her could tell, and some were even hurt by her own pain. He was one of them, his empathy towards his sister-in-law always been great, and it still was now.

"Ursa, you don't need to hide it any longer, we all know why you suffer, and it cuts us deep as well. It's really hard for me to look at you these days, without feeling what you are now. Even Zuko feels your pain, probably more than the rest of us. Whatever happened to Azula and what you've done in the past have no relation, you understand?"

"No, that's not true..." she finally spoke.  
"Why do you tell yourself this? Why are you always dragging yourself down?"  
"Because...I...have...to..."

"No, you don't. Zuko thought like this before, Ursa. And I know my brother. It was a matter of time before something like this would have happened anyways. Please, sister," he called her, like he actually felt that closeness with her, "Whatever small part that you may have played in this matter can't be changed now. If there's any chance that she can be saved, you may be able to help her. Until then, please stop belittling yourself, it doesn't do anybody any good."

He wiped away one of her salty tears with his right index finger and smiled. "Go talk to him, Ursa. Not only are we doing this for the people and for Azula, but we're also doing this for you. Be warned, Zuko is not beyond killing her if need be. But I've seen him grow for all these years, he will do everything within his power to never do such a thing. Only if no other option was left available. He knows this, too. That's also why we are searching for Aang. That boy won't let anyone die, he may even be the one to prevent Zuko for doing such a thing. Whatever happen will happen, so comfort your son. Besides, I'm getting too old for these emotional topics," he said with a short chuckle.

Ursa finally smiled herself and gave him a quick hug before walking away. He waited until she reached Zuko before walking back into the cabin. "It seems this war is not over yet, even after all these years. Whatever the result, I pray it will finally end all this strife."

* * *

"Aagh!" Toph screamed as she was bashed up against the wall by Azula. She bashed again, and again, and again, until the skin on her forehead decided to break and produced streams of blood. "Where's that smart mouth of yours now, Toph? Or does the taste of your own blood on your lips silence you? Maybe you enjoy the taste, want it? Fight back, girl. Come on, hit me with the earth around you, with your strong fists. I haven't felt physical pain in so very long, I've almost forgot what it feels like."

Toph spat the blood out of her mouth and placed her hands on the wall, feeling its stone surface. "Fine." A column Bended from the wall and stretched around to tackle Azula's stomach, sending her flying across the room and relieving her grasp on Toph's neck. Toph fell to the floor and could see again, trying to assess her situation. Before she could do anything else, Azula lit herself aflame with blue fire, with a sadistic look on her face. "Too bad you can't see me right now, Toph, I'm feeling so good, so energized. This look on my face, oh, it's so terrible, even gives me chills. And I'm on fire! HAHA! Let's see how much Sokka loves you with a charred face, I want to know if he does. Feel what it's like to be hated, to be unloved, to be feared!"

Before Azula could make her next move, Toph could hear a piercing noise and a screech of pain. Sokka's jade sword was inserted into Azula's left thigh, her blood dripping down his green blade. Toph's movement was frozen, she didn't even know Sokka had crawled up to her, what was he thinking? That idiot! If he kept this up, he'd, he'd...

"Stop it! Sokka!" Toph pleaded, knowing that if he pushed himself any farther, he'd die.  
"Toph, shut up. Nobody threatens my girl," he said before fainting, hands and body falling back onto the floor.  
"Ooh, so, that's how you wanna play, is it?" Azula said with a very satisfied look on her face, "This is getting good. I'll just kill you right now."  
"NO!" Toph screamed, trying to decide what to do next. Just then, to her surprise, and everyone else in the room, a single voice spoke out that halted them all.

"That's enough, Azula. Keep her alive for now." Toph recognized that voice, but it was hard to remember who it belonged to, it was somebody familiar but, so much was happening, she couldn't even think straight.  
"Aw, Daddy! Come on!" Azula said, annoyed that her fun was about to end.

_Daddy?_ Toph thought, _Oh no! Crap! It's... No way!_

Ozai grew stern at his daughters disobedience and Bended a fireball close to where she stood. "The next one won't miss, Azula. Stand down, we need to keep her alive, the same for her parents. Just for now, trust me, you'll have your fun." The strangest thought appeared in Toph's mind at his words, she was thankful that she wasn't going to die and that her parents were still alive, but what was going to happen to them? And to Sokka?

"Fine, whatever," Azula said, spitting onto the fainted Sokka. "What about him?"  
"Take him away, do whatever you want with him. And you can just leave Ty Lee and Suki here, I love how you've decorated this room.  
"No! Stay away from him!" Toph screamed out, fear preventing any movement she could have taken. "You're not taking him! No! Leave him alone!" Ozai sighed at Toph's little outburst and signaled his men to bind her, he wasn't about to soil his hands with a weakling who allowed her emotions to take control over her. Emotions were worthless, the only thing that should ever matter was yourself, and what you could accomplish. "Azula," he said, turning his back.

"Yes, Father?"  
"If you ever say no to me again, I'll treat you just like I did Zuko. You understand?"  
Azula gulped, scared from his words. "Perfectly."  
"Good, and you'd know best to keep it that way."

Toph's feet and arms were bound, as the two men carried her away. "Sokka! Sokka! Get off me! Take me back! Bastards!"

"Would you _please_ put a muzzle on that _thing_?" Ozai commanded, irritated that she was still yelping. They put a rope in her mouth and tied it around the back of her head, stopping the wretched sounds coming out. _Hey Meathead, don't leave me, okay? Don't ever, ever, EVER leave me. I wouldn't know what to do without you, and I'm finally understanding what it means to be in love. You can't take that feeling away from me, I won't let you. If you die, I'm going to kill you, you're not gonna get away with that._

Azula pulled out the sword that was still jarred inside her flesh and grinned at the one who managed to put it in there. "You're a warrior to the end, aren't you, Sokka? Stupid, but a grand fighter nonetheless. My leg hurts, boy, it feels so good. The warm blood trickling down my skin, the coldness of this open wound on my numbing leg, the shivering sensation and the stinging, throbbing, writhing pain. I could cut your head off with your very sword, but that wouldn't be any fun. I want to force you to see how much that girl of yours will suffer before I force her to watch you die. As much a blind person can."

Azula focused her gaze on Sokka before her wounded leg forced her knees to the floor. Her mental state might have enjoyed this feeling, but her body didn't share the same feeling. "Oh, you worthless thing, can't even take a small puncture like this? I should just cut the whole leg off, it'll stop bothering me if I do that." She actually pointed the blade to her leg and pondered the thought, every second having the sword come closer until finally, the very tip of it touched her skin. Her lips trembled, and hands shook, only being seconds away from amputation. She could do it, she could just cut it off and that'd be the end of it, a weak leg shouldn't be allowed on her body if it was crippled by a pain so small.

Her mind kept telling her that, but in actuality, the gash in her leg was a fairly decent size, and the blood was still pouring out, staining her clothing and pooling onto the floor. "Bah, whatever. Too much hassle to sever this stupid thing. I'd have to find another leg anyways, it'll just have to do." She looked down at Sokka, who was still passed out from exhaustion and loss of blood. "You won't be any fun if you're going to be like _this_ the whole time. I'm feeling nice today, we'll fix you back up. And after that..." she smiled and placed her hand under her chin, "We're going out on a 'date.'"

* * *

"Zuko, you've been up all night, and most of the day before. You need some rest," Iroh told him, looking at the dark circles under the Firelord's eyes.  
"Why bother, Uncle? We'll be there tomorrow. Doubt he's even there anyways, don't know why I let you talk me into this, I don't even want to think about how many people Azula has killed already."  
"Then don't. We don't have much of a choice, Zuko. You need to listen to me, you're being stubborn again."  
"Yeah, well, maybe Mai was right after all."

"Hmm, yes. Maybe. But maybe not. If you believe hope exists, then you'll be able to find it anywhere. The only thing you need to worry about now is getting some rest, let the crew take care of the rest. I'll knock you out if I have to, you need your sleep."

Zuko, knowing that he wouldn't be able to talk his uncle out of it, and knowing that he really did need to sleep, exhaled. "Okay, you're right. Not much time left, is there?"  
"No, that's why you need your rest."  
"Yeah, I'm going. Hey, Uncle?" Zuko said, before leaving, "Thanks for everything."  
"You're welcome, Zuko, I'm only looking out for you."

Zuko took a bow in reverence to his uncle and left the dock, going into his cabin room for the first time since the departure. Despite all the voices, memories, and unknowns racing around in his head, he fell asleep immediately the very second he crashed onto the bed. Tomorrow was the day they'd reach the Tribe, and with any luck, they'd meet up with Aang. He began to dream, and in it, he tried to forget everything that was on his mind, but things like that aren't so easily forgotten.

"You'll never survive, Zuko."  
"What? What's going on here? Who are you?" Zuko asked in his dream, searching all around.  
"Eh? You've forgotten about me already, dear Zuko? That's not very nice, you know. And here I thought that I was the one with memory problems."  
"Azula!" he exclaimed.  
"There you go. See? I knew you'd remember."

"What do you want, Azula? Why are you here?"  
"I don't know, you tell me. Why are you?"  
"That's not what I asked! Answer me!"

"A one-track mind, Zuzu? You haven't changed at all," the apparition spoke with a glisten in her eye. Zuko flared up at the sound of his nickname, but settled down once he found out what was going on. Either this was _real_, or maybe this dream was only playing out on its own. One thing was for certain, though; the feelings and emotions he was experiencing _were_ real, and that only made the dream seem more like a nightmare.

"You'll...you'll never get out of my brain, will you, Azula?" he asked, lowering his head.

"How can I? You're the one putting me in here. Still feeling guilty for imprisoning me all those years? Did you even know how I felt?" Her voice was bold now, filled with a burning hatred. The scenery warped into a cracked and leaking prison cell, and not just _any_ cell, it was hers. Or at least, _had_ been hers.

"You remember this place, don't you, brother? Can you still smell that unwashed stench I was forced to leave behind? Can you feel the infections of my blood, tears, and vomit all spilled and stained onto the floors and walls? I forgot the number of years I had spent in there; every single day was like an eternity, being repeated over and over. Every passing morning was as dark and black as the evening, not even one small window to let in a fraction of light. The bitter cold of those floors, like the chill of the night, the suffocation of that dismal and dry air... You put me through **HELL,** Zuko!"

Her accusation echoed and bounced off the stoned and wet walls. "No, you put yourself in there, Azula." Zuko responded calmly.  
"Oh? I did, huh?" she asked, twitching an eye.  
"You were unstable! Dangerous! We had no other choice!"  
"Hm? You didn't? That's funny. Instead of getting me help, you decided that it was best to keep me locked away and have my mind rot throughout the years? Yeah, that makes a lot more sense."  
"I tried! We couldn't get you any therapy! You had killed so many, and everyone was afraid and hated you!"  
"Ah, I see. Odd, though, I seem to recall that you had also killed quite a few men in the past. So, Zuzu," she said slyly, and with her infamous smirk, "Do _you_ hate me?"

"I..."

"Well? Is it that hard a question? Something that you actually have to think about? You know what that means."

"No!" _Well, maybe?_

"Maybe?" Azula said, as if she could read his mind and thoughts. This 'dream' was becoming something entirely different now, something that Zuko had no chance of understanding. This was far beyond any normal dream state, and his actual consciousness was wondering if he could wake up and escape, or if it was even possible. All his stress, fear, guilt, and every other emotion suppressed inside of him over the years took over, like his spirit was fighting against itself, bringing him along for the ride.

"Get me out of here!" he shouted, banging the walls after noticing Azula was no longer in there. "Sister! Where are you?" Sister? Wow, since when was the last time he actually referred to her person with that name? That was such an intimate word, which carried along with it his desire of her being a real sister, like he _wanted_ to have her as a sister. However, even though they carried the same blood, she was anything but a sister, significantly different; a bloodthirsty monster.

"Sister! Where are you? Get me out of here!" he pleaded again, bashing his fists up against the walls until his skin broke and blood covered their surface. "Help me!" he said again, not understanding why he was trapped or even why he was freaking out.

"Help you?" Azula's voice called out, holding spite within the words, "Zuzu, let's see how _you_ feel when your mind rots away."

With those words spoken, the cell walls melted into dark red blood, and as he stood there while the pool was rising up to his shoulders, he began to scream. His sounds were muffled and shortly silenced once the thick ooze passed over his hair and flowed down into his throat, choking the life out of him, and fading everything into black.

He awoke in a panic and sweat on his face, surrounded by both Iroh and Ursa. "W-wh-what?" he stuttered, holding his head and wiping away his sweat. "Where?"  
"You're still aboard the ship, Zuko. We're almost there," Iroh told him.  
"There? What are you talking about? Wait––oh! How much longer?"  
"I'd say about an hour or so. We've been traveling for days, you know."  
"Yeah, I remember."  
"Zuko," his mother spoke, "Is there anything I can do? I can't Bend, I have no fighting skills. I don't want to be in the way, but I still want to save her. Did I make a mistake in coming along?"

"Mom, of course you can help! Just stay with me, you'll get through to her." _Although, after that dream, I'm really not sure what she'd do._ Zuko put his hand on Ursa's shoulder and then proceeded to hug her. "Everything will be okay, Mother. Please gather yourself together, okay? I hate seeing you this way, being so weak. It's really brought you down, at least, for one day, cheer up for me, okay?" Ursa closed her eyes and smiled, placing her hands on top of Zuko's. "I think I can manage that."

The rest of the voyage wasn't long or terrible like it had been all the way up until this point, things were actually starting to come together. Only a brief amount of time was left before they made port, and if Aang was at home, they'd be able to find him quickly. In Zuko's mind, however, that seemed like a very big 'if.' If this, if that... Even if he failed... It was all about what might happen instead of making it into something that he _willed_ to happen. That dream (or whatever it was) stimulated all his nerves and kept his adrenaline pumping, on constant alert for something awful to happen, like it was somehow out there waiting for them. That was crazy, though. Nothing was here, he knew that for a fact, but there was that lingering feeling of something very ominous and evil coming their way. Or, maybe, they were coming its way, the complete reverse. Whatever it was, he was definitely on edge and once he felt someone behind him touch his shoulder, he immediately pulled back and drew his swords.

"Woah there! Slow down, Zuko!" Iroh said with a laugh, but also with that concerned look in his eyes, "What's wrong? You've been acting very strange since that dream you had."  
"I'd rather not talk about it, Uncle."  
"You never do!" Iroh sighed and threw up his arms, but then rolled his eyes and brought them back down. "Ah, fine. I'm sure it's nothing important. We're about to dock now, what would you have us do, Firelord Zuko?"

"Tell the crew to remain here, I do not want them taking part of a battle they have no intention of fighting. From here, it's just us three. If the Avatar allows, his flying Bison will take us there in no time." The ship's ramp lowered onto the ice once the boat came to a halt, and Iroh, Ursa, and the Firelord all made their way down its metal surface. To their surprise, Aang and Katara were actually there on the icy shore and greeted them. It was odd, given that these two knew nothing of the current situation, but he was still relieved that he could actually find them. Maybe there was still some hope. Yeah, just a maybe. "What are you two doing here? You know what's going on?" were the first words out of Zuko's mouth, almost sounding like a whip being cracked.

"Zuko..." Katara said, a bit annoyed at his question, "We live here. We can be wherever we want. Besides, after all that stuff I went through recently, fresh air is always welcome. We're in the Northern Tribe, remember? Did you think that you guys could just dock in here without any of us knowing? Come on, Zuko. We found out you were coming since yesterday."

"So, what's going on?" Aang asked his dear friend, while giving Katara a side-hug. Zuko gulped, and the words almost never left his mouth, but after some fierce opposition to his sudden silence, he was finally able to speak. "It's... it's Azula..." he said, quietly, but at least it was heard. Her name struck fear into Aang, and Katara flinched from his tightened hold. Zuko told the married couple all the details he knew, and theories of the things he didn't know. After explaining the dire situation, and some of the history behind it, Aang clenched his glider-staff. "Let's go, they could all be in danger."

Katara seconded him, and the two stood ready to fight. "Just like that, Aang? You're coming?" Zuko questioned, a little confused that he'd so willingly jump into a battle.  
"Yeah, just like that. I won't tell you what I had to go through with Katara recently, I can't forgive myself if I just let my other friends die. We're going. Appa will fly us there the fastest he can."  
"Yeah, and knowing my brother, that boy's gotten himself into trouble, already," Katara said with a smile, but not knowing how true her words really were.

* * *

"Errnggghh," Sokka voiced, as his hands felt around his head, waking up from a daze he didn't even know he was in. "What happened?" He moved his arm to his side to feel for his sword, but noticed it was gone. _Again._ "Man! Why does everyone want to steal my sword? Come on people!" For the moment, his sword was the only thing on his mind until he noticed his bandaged wounds, even though he found himself locked away in a metal cell. "Huh? Just what is..."

"Confused?" Azula said, stopping his question.  
"Azula! Let me out of here! Where's Toph? Give her back! I'll kill you if you touch her!"  
"Ha! You will, huh? If you want her back, _somebody_ has to touch her. Plus, you're all alone inside that small boxed room. Oh, and by the way..." Azula lit her hands on fire, "You can't do this." As if making her point, she extinguished the flames and walked very slowly to the bars on Sokka's gated door. She studied him for a few seconds and clamped her hand onto the scalp of his head.

"I don't know what that girl sees in you, Sokka, but hey, you _do_ have a cute face."  
Sokka pulled away from her and gave her an angry scowl. "Get your hands off me, you evil creature!"  
"Evil? I'm not doing anything evil, I'm only getting what I want."  
"What you want? You don't deserve anything, you're just a––"

"Just a _what,_ Sokka?" Azula cut in, halting his words. "Didn't I bandage you, hmm?"  
"Yeah, after you half-killed me you stupid little..."  
"You better stop with those insults, boy. You're kinda making me angry."

"I'm pretty angry myself, Azula. I'll call you whatever I want."

"Oh, is that so? You're only talking tough because I'm not in there. Bah, screw it, step back unless if you want to get burned." She engulfed herself in flame and walked through the metal bars, having them melt behind her as she walked towards her victim. _Crap! Shoulda kept my mouth shut! Oh man, oh man! She's walking right to me! What do I do? What do I do? _"Where's that tongue of yours now, Sokka? I'll teach you to talk back to someone like me."

"I didn't know that you were so delicate, Azula. Can't take a few words?" he said, trying his best to talk his way out of a battle while confusing the enemy.

"Ah, I see, you never know when to give up. Or to shut up, it's one of those. I guess that rodent girlfriend of yours would find that attractive, but still..." Her gaze locked onto Sokka's lips and she displayed a very sinister look on her face. Without waiting to see what she'd do next, Sokka took advantage of her dimming flame and swiped her legs, bringing her down to the floor and having his knee hold her in place. With one hand, he pressed against her torso, and with the other, he slammed her head onto the floor a few times until she finally made a sound.

The look in her eyes was something that he was not expecting, something that actually caught him off guard and loosen his grasp. She was _enjoying_ the beating, the warm blood trickling off her lips, the weighted force of him on top of her, she was loving every last part of it. In his shock, Azula took advantage of the situation and shoved him up against the wall. "Nice try, Sokka. You may be strong, but that's not good enough." She looked him over and gave a foxy grin. "You know, I could just burn you up right here and now. Technically, we don't really need you. Only that short girl and her parents, that's all that we truly need. I can kill you any moment I want."

"Go to hell."

"I've already been. And let me tell you," she forced her mouth into Sokka's and made him engage along with her, no matter how much he hated it; and he truly did. After she left him breathless, she released her hold and he fell to the floor, still in a depressed silence. "Even a demon like me can survive hell's fire," she Bended another fireball in the palm of her hand and its light shadowed her face, "I can even create it. I wonder where your little flame has gone," she said in reference to Toph as she walked out of sight, Sokka still speechless and afraid.


	21. Lost and Found

**Chapter Twenty: Lost and Found**

"Yeah, you heard me, Toph. He kissed me, I made sure that he did," Azula gloated, kicking the roped Toph once more. She squealed and moved about in a barrage of emotion, but her words were still muffled from the itchy and pointy rope tied around her mouth. Just as well, too, one would suppose. Azula could only imagine the curses this little girl was screaming at her right now, and she loved it. It meant that she had struck a cord in her, that she was digging inside of her. "Aww, what did you say? Are you angry? Sad?" Azula raised her eyebrow with a smirk, "Or maybe you're overjoyed."

Toph made louder sounds at that, but despite her best efforts to break free of the bindings that were wrapped tightly all around her, all she could do was squirm forward a few more inches onto the floor. She hated this, she hated _her._ Sokka would never do that! No! Not even if he was forced to die! She had to be lying, she just had to be. She was always good at that, this was just probably another one of her schemes to just drag her down. Toph knew better than that, though; she was stronger than that. A few untrue words wouldn't faze her, no, Azula would have to do a lot more than that. "You're a liar!" she wanted to say, but those words were heard just like everything else: muffled inaudible unimportant sounds. Azula raised her lip in conquest after seeing Toph's reaction.

"Oh-oh! Seems like I've gotten inside that hard shell of yours, girl. It is hard to believe, isn't it?"  
Toph could only answer her with a cold eye, but its message was very clear.  
"Yeah, you're right. He didn't want it at first, oh no."

_Wait, what? At first?_

"Remember how you were all mournful once Daddy took you away? How I left your boy half-dead at the very least? Well, I decided to bandage the idiot up, stop his bleeding so that he could live a little while longer. That was yesterday, Toph. Yeah sure, he still didn't last too long afterwards, but, at least I got to do something that you never had the chance to."

_What? He would never! And, "Didn't last too long?" Just what is she saying? She's not saying that..._

Azula was crafty, she loved that side of herself. She wanted to twist this story like a sponge, and let all the juicy parts fall out of it. She didn't care if they were true, didn't care if they were lies, she had it all planned out, down to every last word. She crossed her arms after seeing the expression in Toph's eyes shift from being cold and hateful, to wide and afraid. "Oh? You finally catching on, you worthless thing? I had to force him into it, and believe me, I mean _really_ force him into it, but I got to see him in a way that you will never be able to. I did it just for you, Toph. I thought only about you. 'Poor girl, she's blind. She'll never get to see this, I'll see it for her, right before I kill the both of them.' That's what I said to myself, Toph. I was doing you a favor. I actually saved you the pain, with him gone, you won't ever have to worry about that complex issue again. You'll just never know what happened after that, though. I'm saving that part for myself."

Toph's tears ran wild down her cheeks, or rather, the parts that weren't covered by her ropes, and she writhed in an incredible pain that she had never felt before. She knew she wasn't stabbed, or anything that had to do with a weapon, but it felt like the inside of her whole body just wanted to eat itself alive, leaving absolutely nothing left, and that pain felt the greatest near her heart. This pain was wretched, like nothing she ever thought could have existed. She knew why she was hurting, but yet, at the same time, she didn't know why she was hurting. It was because of Sokka, yeah, but why did it feel this horrible? Is this what love really meant? Did it? That wasn't fair, she just wanted to die. As she was twisting and screaming in agony, having even some of her screams escape the rope, Azula knelt down beside her and ran her fingers through her silky black hair.

"I-left-him-speech-less," she told her, pausing after each word, letting them all sink in. "And you know, the best part..."

_Liar!_

Azula pulled Toph's hair, and maintained the grasp, "All I had to do afterwards was just kill him. He was already so weak, it was easy, almost _too_ easy, I didn't really get much of a thrill out of it. I whispered your name into his ear before I plunged his very own blade into his stomach, slicing it down so that all his insides spilled onto the floor."

_Liar! Liar! Liar!_

"I didn't even have to Firebend, which was a real downer, but at least that's one less person out of the way. Wouldn't you agree?" Azula licked her upper lip and then her lower as a sign proclaiming that she found it enjoyable, delicious. Unfortunately, she had forgotten that Toph was unable to see faces, thus making the movement of her tongue almost pointless, as she wanted her to see it. That leg of hers that Sokka had cut was still throbbing, but it was more or less ignored, unless she wanted to feel it. She glanced over Toph and laughed to herself at the sight. The girl's broken arm must be hurting from the tightly woven threads, and after hearing this news, she was probably feeling a whole lot more.

If it wasn't for Sokka's idea to Bend a metal splint around her arm, she would have passed out already from the pain. Yeah, it hurt, but it was still well protected, it was a very wise idea to help set the bone with this thing on. However, the small amount of pain she felt from that arm couldn't compare to the outrageous, horrid, heart-wrenching pain that she was feeling right now. Sokka didn't do that! No! He wouldn't have! She knew that he loved her, he even said so! And she even believed him! She was ready, too. Ready to give him all of her love, now that she had it in her grasp. It was true that she _still_ didn't really fully understand it, but she knew enough by now to know that it was indescribable; especially to her. She let out another bloodcurdling scream from the intense pain and sorrow, but it was again muffled by the ropes in her mouth. She really wanted to gasp for air, just even take one quick and short breath, in hopes that it would somehow and by every illogical means, quell the pain. All she could do was think, speak inside her mind, and even by doing that, she wished that she didn't have to listen to that voice; that confused, frantic, and weak little girl that was crying, unable to do anything else.

Bored, Azula snapped her fingers a few times, having small streaks of lightning crack out of them. "It's almost time, Toph. Daddy's gonna take your parents and force them to his bidding. After that, well... I don't know, maybe kill them? He wouldn't need them after that, it would actually be kind of annoying if we did keep them alive. We'd have to figure out what to do with them afterwards, anyways. Yeah, death seems like the most reasonable choice. Maybe he'll cut their heads off, or maybe..."

Azula lowered herself to one knee and pulled Toph's hair, bringing her closer to her face. Toph couldn't see anything, her wrappings left her worthless, and with no earrings to cheat her way out of it this time. Even though it was all dark, she knew Azula was right there in front of her, she could feel her heavy breath, and anyone would have felt her evil presence miles away. "Maybe he'll let me kill them, instead. That'll be pretty fun, I wonder how it'll feel. I could do many, many things to them, including-" She let the last syllable of her word drag along for a bit before touching Toph's ear and moving her mouth close to it. "The same way I killed Sokka." She circled her lips again with her tongue, and even breathed into Toph's ear for a second before pulling away. Toph's reaction was priceless, Azula thought, witnessing the events that were now taking place.

Muffled screams came out of Toph's mouth like never before, and she thrashed all about in a combination of both rage and grief. Her tears were pouring out of her eyes like a mighty storm, irritating the skin as their salty compositions made contact with the itching and burning ropes. Toph felt something worse than horrible in her stomach, and that newfound pain was coming up fast, to her throat, and then out of the mouth. And then again, and again, and again. Her insides were on fire, it was like she had just swallowed some acid, threw it back up, and then drank another cup of the same substance, repeating the cycle. Azula could see streams of tan and white liquid finding their way out of the ropes, running down before drying up. She laughed when Toph was even able to expel the stuff out onto the floor, even through those ropes. Stomach bile, vomit, and everything else was most likely being thrown out of her mouth, and Azula loved to watch her suffer; to think that such a small and simple lie would affect someone so greatly.

_He's dead? He's DEAD? No, no, no! I told that boy to never leave me, that he had no right to take away something that he first gave to me! I can't breathe! Get these ropes out of my mouth! I'm going to die! But, Sokka, he's already..._

Azula purposefully waited for Toph to vomit through the ropes one more time before she decided to so graciously remove them. Once those ropes were cut, a mixture of blood and stomach fluid excreted from Toph's mouth, nearly choking her lungs. Her lips were shaking, whole body trembling, she had never felt anything so intense before, and she hadn't even been attacked. Was this what it felt like to lose someone so dear to you? If so, then what was the point in loving him to begin with if he was going to die and she'd be left like this? Why did there even have to be such a thing as love? None of it seemed worth the pain right now, and with Sokka gone, that was practically her only chance of actually feeling like a real woman, _all_ of the things that she would have felt if she was still with him. Why? Why did life have to be so cruel? There was never, ever, such a thing as a 'happy ending' in real life. It never happened to her, and now, it never would.

"A-zz-uuu-laahh," Toph stuttered inbetween coughs and casted saliva, "You..." _Agh! It hurts so much! Stop it! Stop it! Stop it! I hate this pain, just leave me alone! I'm fine! There's nothing wrong! Nothing wrong at all! _"I-"

"Hmm? Trying to say something? Well, spit it out. Unless of course, you've done that already," Azula said, pointing to the murky puddle on the floor. "You're smug," Toph said, being able to speak, after another short vomit, "Just go screw yourself, and then die!"  
"Ohh," Azula said, with some excitement, "Just like I did to Sokka?"

Toph had enough, she wanted this person to die. She herself wanted to die, there was nothing left for her if she couldn't have Sokka. She didn't care, she was stuck here, her parents were going to die, she couldn't do anything about it, and as much as she loathed giving up, her current situation gave her no choice in the matter. Hoping that Azula was still in front of her, Toph lunged forward like a viper and sunk her teeth into the arm. If this was all she could do, then so be it. She had to do _something._ Toph dug deeper and deeper into Azula's arm, the blood dripping onto the floor and into the mouth. She made grunting noises as she refused to let go, but she hadn't heard a single sound from Azula since the attack.

Surprised at her primal attack, Azula really didn't expect Toph to do such a thing, but in the end, it didn't really matter. So what if she was bleeding? If her arm was being fanged? She couldn't feel the pain anymore, even if her body told her that it was still there. "Bite down as hard as you can, you feral beast. I still can't feel anything." Toph took her advice and bore down deeper, creating more blood flow, but once it reached a certain climax, she had to let go, she needed to breathe, and the blood was beginning to choke her lungs. Once her teeth were pulled out, she came crashing down onto the floor, pounding her head up against the stoned tile. _Ouch! Just who is she? My stupid mouth hurts now! I can't... I can't even..._

"Heh, so much for protecting each other, eh, Sokka?" she said before passing out.

Azula shook off the blood on her arm, and then sprinkled Toph with it. "That's a new way of fighting, Toph. Too bad that everything I said was a flat-out lie. Well, not **everything.** Don't worry, dear girl, I'll be sure to send you an invite to your parents' funeral." Azula found some cloths and tightly wrapped them around Toph's mouth. "There you go. Isn't that better?" She walked out the door, letting the blood from the open wound on her leg drip along the hallways. "Stupid thing's still bleeding? I thought I told you that I was going to cut you off if you kept this up." Azula squeezed down tight onto the tourniquet, and threatened the leg once more.

"Produce one more drop of blood, I dare you. I really don't care what it feels like, I actually kind of enjoy it but, I just don't want you slowing me down! One more drop, yes, just one more, and I'll cut you off my body. I don't need any weak imperfections, you're really starting to annoy me." As if the leg could actually hear and understand her, it stopped its bleeding, and Azula presented her gratitude with a rude curse. "Good, now keep it that way. Father won't love me anymore if I show him any signs of weakness, got it! Speaking of which, you stupid worthless leg, he'll probably kill me if I don't head back. It's just about that time."

* * *

Suki panted and wheezed as she turned the corner, trying to hide from the sight of anyone who would see her. She had been searching the entire complex for Sokka since yesterday after she managed to escape, but it didn't make any sense how a small mayor's building would be this gigantic, they were probably underground, and that'd explain a lot of things. She hadn't slept since she released herself from the wall Azula left her on, and the fatigue was beginning to show. Escaping from there was hard enough, just to begin with. She had no idea how long she had been unconscious, but when she awoke, she found herself chained to the wall by her wrists, and the arms completely numb and useless.

She always kept a well hidden blade in her mouth, and it was only to be used for emergencies. She carefully positioned the razored edge in her mouth and somehow managed to move her body to where the tool could cut the chains. She cut her lip a few times, because she had to constantly lift herself back up, but once one arm was free, she could undo the second. Upon falling onto the floor, she noticed that Ty Lee was in the same predicament, on the far left side of the wall. First, she took the small knife in her hand and readied a stance, preparing herself for oncoming attackers, but none were to be found. Without wasting any time to say hello, Suki inserted her knife into Ty Lee's shackles, and then proceeded to carry her on her shoulders.

Everything that happened after that, still left her in total confusion. When Ty Lee awoke, she nearly toppled over Suki, as she was still running. "Aiieee! What are you doing? Suki!" Ty Lee squirmed, which made Suki fall to her face. The landing opened up a previous wound; the same that had caused her to be in this situation in the first place. Her mid-section ached and bled, making her cringe for a few minutes. Ty Lee wasn't in much better shape, either. Azula had purposefully attacked her legs, automatically disabling her vast acrobatic skills. She could walk alright, and probably run for a short distance, but overexertion and any type of jumping would be close to impossible. A sharp pain was felt in her legs, and then she remembered what was happening.

"Suki, where's everyone else?" she asked, as they both helped each other up.  
"Dead," Suki said, sounding cold, but finding no other way to say it.  
"That's not funny, Suki!"  
"It's no joke!" Suki scolded, grabbing Ty Lee's uniform collar.  
"I lost all my girls! Why would I lie about that, huh?" Her fist trembled, ready to punch Ty Lee, but her friend placed her hands over it, calming the emotions. "Okay, sorry, Suki. Didn't mean to accuse you of anything." Ty Lee paused a moment, noticing the bloodstain on Suki's battered armor.

"I'm okay, alright? You have wounds of your own, too, you know."  
"Yeah, Azula knows where to hit... Hey," she said, perking up, but at the same time, sounding a little concerned, "Where's Sen? Do you know? She still alive?"

Following the hallway some more back in the present, Suki could remember what happened after that; she could find no answer, and because of that, Ty Lee frowned (which was hardly ever seen), and ran off to look for Sen. Suki had tried to call out to her, afraid that she'd be spotted by another enemy, but there wasn't much she could do.

"Ty Lee! You're going to get yourself killed! Stand down!" Ty Lee actually stopped for a brief moment after hearing Suki's words, thinking them over, but then continued to move forward without looking behind her. She believed that Sen still had to be alive, she wouldn't let anyone tell her otherwise, but the only problem remaining was to actually find her.

Back to reality, Suki pressed herself up against an obscure corner, as some of Ozai's men passed by. She hated them, she even considered killing them, but having two dead men on the floor would raise a lot of suspicion, not that she hadn't created some already. Azula had to know that her and Ty Lee escaped from their chains, may have even sent some people after them, but she couldn't read that girl at all. Perhaps Azula didn't care that they ran, maybe even wanted them to. She was mad, not a shred of sanity left inside of her. Suki was now becoming exhausted, trying to push back the pain, going without sleep in fear of being caught, and grief from knowing that she led her warriors into a death trap. She didn't even know if Sokka was still alive; for all she knew, _everyone_ was dead. Sen, maybe Ty Lee, Sokka, Toph...

Toph? She was still with Sokka now, right? Yeah, that girl nearly destroyed her the last time they met. Toph and Sokka loved each other, sure, but at one point in time, he also loved _her._ Suki was so annoyed with herself, she still couldn't get Sokka out of her head, even after six years, and in a dangerous situation like this. He was a really handsome man, and his muscular build wasn't that bad, either. She smiled at the thought, remembering his strong shoulders, but shook it off almost within the same instant. It would have been a lie to say that she had no feelings or emotions for him, but it wasn't possible for her to still be in love with him, could it? If she did still love him, how could she even be thinking that, now that he was with Toph? All it would take would be one more kiss, and then she'd...

"Suki," she whispered to herself, blinking away the thought, "It's over between him and you, okay? It has been for years, get a grip, Warrior. You're glad he's with her now, you really are, just let go of him, okay? Never forget the times you shared, but from now on, always look at them in a different light." She was shocked and surprised she'd even say those words, even though her heart had been trying to scream them all this time. It had to have been one of those, 'in the heat of the moment' things, but for some reason, she felt a burden lift. It would have been foolish to think that she had gotten past this issue once and for all, but there was some temporary relief, allowing her to think straight. The halls had been unusually silent, and that was always a bad sign, meaning that something big was happening elsewhere. This was good in the fact that she didn't have much to worry about here, but probably pretty soon, things were going to get much, much worse.

She stopped, having that crippling pain come back, actually making her cry a little this time. "Hold on, Suki. You'll pay her back a hundred fold, you owe her a few, anyways." Suki really had no clue what she was doing at this point, no team equaled no plan, although she was never one for giving up. She'd come up with something, but she just needed somebody's help. Somebody like Sokka.

"Suki, there you go again. Get your head together," she told herself, not wanting to think about Sokka at the moment, even though she was still trying to find him, the idea was so conflicting, it was confusing. After another walk down the stone-paved white walls, and wondering if this 'strategy' of hers would ever change, she could hear a very feint noise somewhere close within the distance. She waited to hear it again, and it sounded more like a cry the second time around, the sound of a young woman crying, at that.

"Something's up, where's that coming from? I think I know that voice." Suki walked a little closer and noticed an open door, revealing a tied up girl on the floor. "Why is this door open? Did Azula..." Suki stepped closer and turned the unidentified person over, in order to see her face. Her hands nearly dropped the teenaged woman after she saw her face. "Toph! You're still alive, girl? What's going on?"

Toph ignored her, eyes still closed, and the cloth still around her mouth. She definitely knew who it was from her voice, but she didn't care. Nothing mattered anymore. Suki gently untied the gag and also undid her ropes. "There you are, Toph. That should feel better, now tell me, where'd they stash Sokka?"

Toph remained silent, she didn't even want to hear that name, and not definitely not from someone like her. Her eyes were still closed, but it didn't matter much anyhow, she'd be blind either way. She had been crying so much, that she didn't even know if she could talk. Didn't even know that she could cry so hard. Sokka was a jerk for leaving her, for breaking his promise, and for not letting her keep the only thing she ever wanted.

"Toph! Come on! Where is everyone? Where's my Sokka!" _MY Sokka? Oh man... Toph! No! I didn't mean it! It's over, honest! I've gotten over him, okay?_  
"He's not yours..." Toph said, her voice barely above a whisper.  
"Toph, I know, I-"  
"He's NOT yours!" Toph repeated, her voice growing louder, and more tears streaming from her eyes.

Suki hugged Toph, not knowing what else to do, and then Toph just burst into wailing after that. Suki was scared, except for a very few instances, she had never seen Toph cry, and in none of them, was she actually this bad. "Toph, why are you upset? What did Azula do to you?"

_I'm bruised and bleeding for starters, you stupid bimbo... _"Sokka, he's... He's... She..."  
"Toph?" Suki asked, almost fearing what she was going to say next.  
"He's d-d-d-deadd."  
"What?" Suki's heart dropped and skipped a beat.

"You heard me, dammit! You want me to repeat it again? He's dead! DEAD! Azula took everything away from me! EVERYTHING! Dad and Mom are going to die, Sokka already has died, I'm going to die, and I really don't care if _you_ die."

"Gee, Toph. Show me some bit of kindness, alright? I've been looking for you guys since yesterday, we're in a large underground pathway."  
"Yeah, like I really care about that," Toph snapped, becoming more and more hostile.  
"Toph, what are you saying? That he's...really...gone?"

"Suki, how many times do you think I can say it without my heart bursting? Just shut up already, okay? I really, really, really do not want to talk to you. Or anyone, for that matter. Just leave me alone, I'm bound to get that way soon enough, anyways."  
"Toph, this really isn't like you at all. This-"

"Shut up, Sokka!" Toph said, recalling the time he told her that, and hearing his voice through Suki's, "Don't tell me what I'm like!"  
"Toph..."  
"What? Oh, Suki. I... I..." her voice screeched, and she tried to mask her tears.

Suki was about to break, too, but something inside of her told her that this wasn't correct. Sokka couldn't have died, if he promised Toph that he'd stay with her, then he'd live up to that promise, no matter what. She knew that for a fact, one of the qualities she admired of him.

"Toph," she tried to say, but also starting to cry from the news, "I honestly doubt Sokka's dead. He has to be alive, you got it?"  
"Liar! Stop trying to make me 'feel better!' Not gonna work, you got it? Azula said that he... and that she did... and then they..." her voice and thoughts faded off, and Suki wiped some of her tears away.  
"Toph, look at me. Er, listen to me. For the time that I've known Sokka, and when we were together,"

"Suki, I really don't want to hear what you did with MY boyfriend..."  
"Hey! I acknowledge he's yours, got it? But don't forget that I dated him before, too. And just let me finish, alright? I'm about to cry myself, you little monster."  
"Just... Yeah, whatever."  
"Toph, during the time I've known Sokka, I've known him to never break his promises. You know that too, right?"

"Well, yeah, that is, until now."  
"No!" Suki shouted, pounding her fist onto the floor, "You're missing the point! Didn't I just say that he _never_ backs down on his promises? Do I need to translate that any clearer for you? I know those ears of yours work better than anyone else's. Now, tell me what I just said."

"That-Sokka," she started to speak, taking breaths after each word, "Never-breaks-his-promises."  
"You should know that, by now, Toph. Seriously, just what is your problem?"  
"I don't know! How would _you_ react if someone you loved had just been killed?"  
"They have! I lost all my Warriors, okay? I don't even know if any of them are still alive! Ty Lee, Sen, all the others, they could be dead, too! You're not the only one in pain, Toph."

"How can you even say that? Do you have any idea of what I went through? You're just gonna write it off like it's no big thing, huh?"  
"Yeah, sure, why not?"  
"WHAT? You did not just say that! Didn't you love him, too? Just what kind of response is that?"  
Suki rolled her eyes, and smacked Toph across the face. "What's that for? You're really starting to make me want to kill you, Suki."

"Toph! You haven't heard a single word I've said! If Sokka never breaks his promises, then he's still alive, you got it? Stop being such an idiot. If you want to find him, we need to leave. Now. There's nobody here, something big is coming, Toph."  
"Something, big? Oh! Mom! Dad!"  
"You know?"

"Azula said that Ozai was going to start some type of 'process' with them, or something. And then kill them! We need to find them! Let's go!"  
"Then stop talking. Here, take my hand, we'll leave right now." Toph took her hand and spoke to her in a calm and kindly voice. "Hey, Suki, thanks. You were right, that wasn't like me at all. I was ready to throw it all away. You have a score to settle with her, too, right? Let's pay it back. Oh, where's Ty Lee? No way that girl is dead just yet. She coming along?"

"She ran off against my orders to look for Sen, I don't know where either one of them are; they could be dead. I don't want to think about it, okay? Let's just get this over with."

* * *

Ty Lee turned around, thinking that she heard her name, but just shook the thought off; the person in front of her was much more important now, anyways. Sen lay in a pool of blood, with a myriad of scars, gashes, burns, and other injuries on her body. What remained of her armor had been stripped, leaving only rags on her skin. Ty Lee didn't know how long Sen had been here like this; it was only yesterday when they escaped. Well, her and Suki escaped. At the time, neither of them knew where she was; only that their friends had been killed.

Ty Lee stroked Sen's face and hair as she knelt into the blood. She was dead, she had to be. From the looks of it, Sen lost more than enough blood, and no human could ever survive such a thing. It was still wet, which meant that it was still fresh, maybe only a few hours old. If this secret underground base wasn't so huge, she might have stood a chance. Written all over the walls were two words in blood that screamed out in utmost horror and distress.

"_Help me!"_

Upon looking at this, Ty Lee broke down and wept. It was bad enough that it took forever to find her, and figuring out how to pick the lock on the door while looking at her dead friend's body, but this just rose to a whole new level. Sen had been crying out for salvation, and for all this time, her dear and trustworthy friends had failed to find her; letting her die in the most gruesome way. Ty Lee hated feeling sad, it always messed with her chi, and that made her feel even worse. She was always held together with positive emotions, and never witnessing anything like this before in her life. Down in her best friend's blood, still stroking her cheek in a hopeless thought that she could still feel it, Ty Lee remembered the times they had shared in the past.

She had almost forgotten what it was like when she first joined the Kiyoshi Warriors. Suki, and practically everyone else, automatically had very little trust of her, given what had happened recently. She expected that, there'd be no reason for them to trust her so soon after she broke away from Azula's grasp. For all they knew, it could have been part of a devious plan. While the others distrusted her for quite some time, Sen actually decided to give her a chance. Suki was a bit more accepting than the other girls, but she still held animosity towards her. While Ty Lee was alone on the island, just watching the sea, Sen came up from behind her and greeted her with a warm hello. At first, Ty Lee didn't know what to think, and responded pretty coldly, even for her.

* * *

"Yeah? What is it?"  
"Woah, there, Ty Lee! That's no way to speak to a friend, you know," Sen said with a pleasant smile. That threw Ty Lee off guard, already assuming that Sen had come to belittle her like everyone else. _Almost_everyone else, Suki had placed more trust in her over time, but there was still that uncomfortable feeling. She felt relaxed with this person, like her aura was swirling back into regular motion.  
"You're- Different from all the rest, aren't you?" Ty Lee asked, trying to figure out why Sen even came. Sen only smiled and patted Ty Lee's head, and ruffled her hair.  
"Hey!"

"Haha, what? Aren't you usually the friendly type?"  
"Yeah, but..." Ty Lee said, blushing as her words faded away.  
"Oh? You're blushing now, are you? Take it easy, girl. You're too funny."  
Ty Lee sighed, and displayed a friendly smile, one that only Suki had been able to return; and that was always halfway, never for real.

"Ah, there you go. All better, yeah? You're smiling now. What's up?"  
"How... How can you just walk right on over to me and act like you've known me for years? I enjoy the friendship, but most of you have been really mean to me ever since I pretended to be part of you with Azula, and causing lots of trouble."  
"Haha! Yeah, that would cause reason for all of that, huh?" Sen laughed, but keeping her friendly tone.

Ty Lee was upset, but somehow, ironically satisfied. "So, you're just going to... give me a chance? Just like that?"  
"Well, you've been here for a while already, girl. You haven't caused any trouble, and you've always tried to be friendly, even when the rest of us were still mad at you. I don't see why we can't be friends. If you've put up with us for this long, I suppose I can trust you."

"Heh, suppose, eh?" Ty Lee said, now perking up and giving a slight laugh.  
"Well, yeah. Why not? Who knows, right? You may very well become the harbinger of doom that will destroy us all. That cute face of yours probably holds a deadly secret," Sen said in jest, giving her a wink.

* * *

After that, those two became really close friends, and Suki eventually became one, as well. Since then, the rest of the Warriors trusted Ty Lee, and everything seemed to be going really well for her. Of course, Suki _did_ get a little upset when Ty Lee dated Sokka, him being the previous ex, but Sokka wasn't really Ty Lee's type, and because it really started to affect Suki, the two of them mutually agreed to break it off, but her and Suki still kept regular contact with him until a few years after.

Ty Lee now held Sen's dead body in her arms, clutching tight onto the head, pressing it hard against her own body. "You were my best friend, Sen! You found no fault with me at all, and when you did, you'd always joke about it, making me feel so much better! I thought that we'd always stay together! That we'd... We'd..." Ty Lee's chest burned, but she held tighter, swishing around the blood that was beneath her.  
"Sen! I love you! Suki and I both loved you! You were such a dear, dear friend! Sen, I let you die. I couldn't find you in time, despite the pleas you had written on the walls with your own blood. Did I let you down? Was it because of me that you died? Did I fail you, Sen? Please, just tell me something. Anything. I just want... Just want you to..." She broke down, again, and this time, she could actually feel her own blood mixing in with Sen's; the droplets falling from the tear ducts in her eyes. It made her entire body tense up, twisting her face; feeling something that she had never experienced before: Grief.

"**SEN!"**

**

* * *

**

The Order of the Phoenix gathered all of the town's people into one location, near the mayor's building. They were herded like animals, having the Order follow behind them, with blades and Benders. There was no possible way for them to escape, and they all wondered what was so important to have these unknown men extract them from their homes and workplaces. Just who were these people and what were they doing? Part of their answer was found once their captors forced their attention onto the flag's pole, showing that the mayor was being hung from it by a rope around his neck.

Shouts and cries were heard upon his sight, striking fear into all of the citizens. "Murderers!" the crowd shouted, along with many other profane adjectives. The Order, who had them outnumbered, quelled the would-have-been uprising with intimidation, letting the people know that if one more spoke out, they'd _all_ be killed. The front doors opened, and Lao and Poppy Bei Fong walked outside, already beaten, allowing most of the citizens' eyes to widen. Lao looked behind him and felt a sword touch his spine. "You'd better get this right," Azula said behind the shadows, hidden from everyone else. "Daddy's watching all of this. You screw up and I'll kill you."

Ursa, Iroh, and Zuko were in disguise and stealthed within the crowd, but given their situation, if they even made a budge towards those two, many people would be massacred. Katara and Aang were able to sneak inside the building during the rally, since all of Ozai's troops had been outside, and not at their posts. Aang used the Earthsight that Toph had taught him to get by the remaining guards inside the building before even coming into view of them, and Appa was far away in a safe distance where no one would see. They had no idea this operation was so huge, and Aang was relieved that they were even able to get inside without being spotted. Their friends were in here somewhere, and so was Azula and Ozai. Aang had enough of his loved ones being in pain, and he wouldn't stand for anyone being killed; not after what he had been through with Katara.

"Say it!" Azula threatened, jabbing the sword farther into Lao's back. "Say it or else you're done for, got it? My hands are trembling already, you see."  
"Citizens," Lao spoke, with his wife turning her head away. "Hear what I have to say."  
"Forget one word, and you won't remember anything," Azula said with a devilish smirk.  
"Poppy and I were forced to kill the mayor, and that has given us complete control over this city and the trade routes."

The people all made a simultaneous gasp, and chatter could be heard amongst their heads. Ozai's men were quick to silence them, but not before one single man spoke out of turn. "Traitors!" After his ill-spoken word, he was decapitated with one swift and clean slice of the sword. Zuko almost attacked the man for it, but Iroh held him back, letting known his concern for Ursa's safety.

"Continue speaking, fool. Father wants to make sure this goes well. Don't mention his name, either, got it?" Azula was following her own orders; Ozai was not an incompetent ruler, he needed to be behind the scenes, so the Kingdoms would know nothing of his return. That was why Lao and Poppy were still alive; they'd be the figure heads for him, channeling all of the citizens' hatred into themselves, along with accomplishing Ozai's work with their own hands. Lao nudged Poppy for some backup, but she remained silent, with her eyes still closed.

"Poppy, you're a part of this, too. Say something!" he told her in a whisper.  
"Leave me alone," she responded in the same manner, "It's horrible we have to do this! Especially since my little girl is dead." She recalled what Ozai had told them, moments before they were pushed outside.

"That little brat of yours is dead, she couldn't endure what we did to her. In fact, she actually pleaded for her life. Those white eyes of hers were overflowing with tears, she begged for her pitiful life to end. You don't know the so-called 'horrors' we put her through, and in the end, she was just a weak little girl who was only able to get by day to day with a facade; claiming that she was strong. Just a worthless creature born from worthless genes."

He let them mourn over his lying words for a good minute until he spoke again. "Stop crying. I won't allow any signs of weakness, here. Just suck it up, understand me? It's no big deal if someone dies. It only means that they've served their purpose and must be moved out of the way."  
"She's my daughter! Don't command my feelings, you hell hound!" Poppy exploded, showing no fear of the man who stood before her.

"Hold your tongue, woman." Ozai knocked her down, and a string of blood hung from her bottom lip. "It's nice to see some backbone in you, but you'll be better off without it when you're in my presence. Learn how and when to use that bravery of yours." He turned his focus over to Lao, and spat in his face. "Your wife isn't much to look at it, with that ugly attitude of hers. She reminds me of someone I got rid of a long time ago. I don't like that memory, so you better make sure she keeps a lid on that mouth of hers."

"Father," Azula said as she came into the room, taking a knee.  
"You'd better have something worthwhile to say, Azula. These two don't know how to speak."  
"The Order have all returned, everyone's outside."

Ozai noticed that his daughter had a satisfied look on her face as she brought the message.  
"Did you have some fun, Azula?"  
"Oh, yes. Nothing like the taste of blood in the morning. I want some more."  
"I can see that, calm down. Azula, you'll have your chance."

"Hey! You staying silent, Lao?" Azula said as she pressed her sword against his back, striking Poppy out of her memory's trance. "Keep this up, and you'll lose more than just your daughter."  
"If we ever make it out of this alive, Azula," Lao whispered back to her, "I'll do far worse than kill you."  
"Oh, you will, huh? Well, that actually sounds kinda fun. I'm looking forward to it. Seriously, though. If I have to jab you one more time, this sword is going right through your ribs. Sell it, you're the evil person now, remember?"

"Hey!" Lao shouted to the crowd, commanding their attention. "Like it or not, I don't really care, but you're going to be listening to me from now on. There was a reason the mayor had to die, and we did it for the good of Gaoling's people. Our daughter... Toph..." He turned to Poppy, "Say something! I can't keep this up!"  
"Our daughter," Poppy finally interjected, "Was killed recently by a rebellion group that she alone tried to stop. She had been keeping this city safe for years, and that mayor over there had decided that it was too dangerous for his own men, but not for my girl. As such, we will now control this city, defending it the same way Toph would."

From one lie to another, Ozai seemed to have things working out pretty well for him, and Azula loved all the drama pent up inside. "Uncle!" Zuko said, still hiding in the crowd, "What do we do? I want to stop this, now! They just said that Toph has been killed, we need to end this!"  
"Zuko, quiet down. Remember what happened to that last man who spoke out? Wait just a little while longer, Zuko. We can't risk the lives of those around us."  
"Alright, yeah. We need to be careful. I still don't like it, though. We should attack as soon as possible."  
"We will, Zuko. Just place the safety of others first, we didn't come here to start another massacre."  
"We came to prevent it! Can't do anything by standing here, but we do need to wait. First chance, I'm taking them all down."

"Good work, Mr. Lao. Now, go in for the kill," Azula said quite happily.  
"Everything everybody does will be monitored on a daily basis, so we can keep unity inside the city. Any opposition to this will be met with swiftly, and treated as a criminal act. It is sad, but this is what you all deserve for letting our Toph die." _Yeah, if that were only the truth... Why do I have to lie about this? Ozai, Azula, I hate you both. Given the right moment, I'll have my revenge, understand?_

"What my husband says is true," _No it's not... _"We blame her death on the people. If you dare challenge our new regime, you will also be killed." _Ozai! This is not the way this city should be run! How could you force us to do this?_

The crowd barked, disagreeing with what they heard, and also grief-stricken from finding out that their precious Toph was presumably dead. There was a long pause until the ground beneath the citizens shook and up came Toph and Suki, rising on their earthen platform. "I ain't dead, yet! Losers. Thought we'd take the scenic route out of the building. Pretty fun." Suki looked over towards where Lao and Poppy stood, and pointed her finger. "Azula! I know you're in there! Come out, you damn coward! The two of us have a score to settle with you!"

"Azula! Uncle, now?"  
"Wait for it, Zuko. Almost there."

The accused kicked open the door, sending both Lao and Poppy to the floor in recoil. "Not dead yet? My oh my, I really didn't expect that. Intriguing. Oh, and as for _you,_ Zuzu," she said, facing the crowd and pointing at him, "You can come out now, I've known you were there this entire time." The citizens ran frantic, discovering that Azula was somehow freed and in their presence. Chaos ensued, and many citizens along with solider were killed as Zuko and Iroh tried to defend themselves, and the innocent. Zuko lost sight of his mother in the heat of battle, and his mind raced across all the possibilities of what could have happened to her. He had no time to call out to her; there were so many dead and dying, and many more trying to kill the rest who remained standing.

Toph slid herself across the land with her Bending, and jumped onto the building's outside floor. "I can see you, Azula," she said, ready to kill. "Mom! Dad! Get out of here, will you? Gah, use your heads!" Suki followed Toph, and the two of them stood back to back, as the guards began surrounding them.

"You can't escape, girls. I'll make sure of it, this time."  
"Toph," Suki said, turning her head, "You feeling okay?"  
"Huh? What did you say? Don't be stupid, I'm just fine."  
"Ah, I get it. You're normal just like you've always been," Suki said with a smile.  
"Yeah."

"You two having fun talking?" Azula said, cocking her head, "Well, that's nice." She cracked her neck, and lit her sword aflame with blue fire. "Pretty, isn't it?"  
Toph stomped the earth, raising both her parents high into the air on two different columns, keeping them well away from any danger.  
"Oh? You think that'll save them? You're bleeding already, Toph."  
Toph spat onto the ground and held in the pain with a false smile. "You're going down, Azula. You killed Sokka, so I'm going to make sure you suffer."

Once Iroh and Zuko had herded the citizens into a safe area, Iroh Bended a large wall of circular flame around his enemies; restricting them from any movement. "Zuko! I've got this, you do what you have to do."  
"I know." Zuko rushed forward to help the girls, but Toph Bended a giant wall of stone to block his path. "Hey! What's your deal? Toph! Let me in!" She ignored him at first, until Zuko yelled a second time. "Zuko! No! I've got a personal vendetta with this woman, and I won't let anyone stand in my way!"

"Alright, ladies. Enough talk. Let's get it on," said Azula, running first towards Suki. Azula came at a ridiculous speed, one that was hard for Toph to follow. Suki dodged Azula's first attack, but feeling the heat of her blade in the process. At her maddening speed, she wasn't able to stop and turn around before she cut into one of her guards, setting his insides on fire. She was entranced by the flame, and before she was able to turn around, Suki had already swept her attacker and struck him down with his stolen sword.

Azula readied her stance for a second charge, as she disregarded the remaining four soldiers left around them. Suki was in combat with two, while Toph fought the others. Suki could feel her chest starting to stretch, but she had to keep going; for her sake, and for Sokka's. A Firebender behind Toph hurled a flaming ball, and it nearly caught her off guard. She 'looked' at the woman, and cracked a smile.

"Azula, I'm gettin' pretty sick of all these pathetic morons all getting in my way. I want to fight _you,_ not these third-rate halfwits." Suki felt the same emotion and as she ducked from her enemy's swing, she sliced upwards, searing a gash into his torso, following it with her blade goring the second. She exerted herself during the fight, and her body dropped down to both knees, crippling her in pain. Toph's battle was also won as she Bended the earth to swallow her enemies whole.

"Wow, that was pretty anticlimactic. I thought you guys would be a bit more fun than that, you know?" Azula looked to the pillars Toph had formed to keep her parents safe and placed her hand under her chin. "What are you looking at, Azula?" Suki snapped as she stood back up.  
"Suki?" Toph asked, also wanting to know what was going on.  
"Just admiring the scenery, girls. Lovely mountains out today, huh? Ever wonder what would happen if they came crashing down? I've always had. Maybe I should try it."

"Suki? What is she talking about?" Toph questioned, too confused and worked up to fight, holding back some pain.  
"Not sure, Toph. Keep on your guard."  
"Oh, there's no need to worry, gals. I'm not attacking _you._" She snapped her fingers and two Earthbenders lowered their ropes from atop the building, and grappled the two columns of stone.  
"Hey! Stop that!" Toph demanded, knowing what they were trying to do. "Oh! That's it! I'm going to-"

Toph was sent flying with a quick punch dealt by Azula, as she took advantage over Toph's emotional state, and by Suki's recurring injury. "Take 'em down, boys. I want you to lower those stones back onto this floor. I've got something to do, baby."

"No!" Toph yelled, shaking off the conflicting emotions that had been swelling inside of her. "I'm not letting you touch anyone else! You can't have the only two people that are left for me!"  
"I'll take whatever I want, girl. Even if I'm not supposed to."

Suki ran in front of Toph, in an attempt to shield her from Azula's oncoming attack and was met with a burning punch in her gut; around the same area her injury was. "Ack!" she exclaimed, dropping fast to the ground. Azula picked her up by the clothing scraps around her breasts, and Bended some fire in her left palm. "You're going to be pretty hot now, Suki." Suki moved her tongue and extracted the hidden blade inside her mouth. She held it within her teeth and slashed Azula's cheek, causing her to be dropped. Suki then spat the knife out, having it strike across Azula's face once more. At first, Azula actually enjoyed the action, and wanted to give credit to Suki for actually pulling off such a maneuver, but this time, nobody would stop her, not even her father.

The plan was to have the Bei Fong family control everything while Ozai ruled from underground, but the heat of battle and the euphoric sense Azula found out of a kill, took over, and now she'd do whatever she wanted, that was _her_ plan from the start, anyways. "Suki," Azula said, letting the droplets of blood fall to the ground without caring to wipe them away, "Say hello to Sokka for me, okay?" She thrusted a ball of flame into Suki's chest, toppling her over in a burning pain, and then grabbed her head and pulled her hair. Suki was slammed to the ground, knocking her unconscious immediately.

Toph ran to save her, but Azula Bended a wall of flame, preventing any farther action. Azula lifted Suki onto her shoulders and ignited her fists, using them as propellers to launch her into the air. While airborne, she threw Suki into the nearby forest, proceeding to set the trees on fire. Satisfied with her conquest, she landed back onto the battlefield just as her Earthbenders finished bringing down Toph's parents. "Oh, goody. Onto business, then." Toph ran at her, but screeched in pain as a burst of flame exploded near her face. She wasn't burned, but the heat was so unbearable, she might as well have been.

Zuko was still behind the wall, trying to Bend his way in, but it was no use. His calls for help hadn't been heard, and Toph was now acting on her own, being stubborn as she always was. Zuko scanned the city for his uncle and mother, but by this time, Iroh had either killed all the men from the Order who acquired the people, or had driven them away. Most of the citizens were safe now, but that didn't give him much of an answer to where the rest of his family went. "Toph! Come on!"

She heard him calling, like she had been during the entire fight, but ignored him again, Azula was _hers_, and that boy wasn't going to take that away. "Azula! I'm going to kill you! Kill you!"  
"Then do it, cute stuff." She jumped and grabbed ahold of Toph, pressing their foreheads together. "I'd love to see you try, Toph," she said rather intimately, before pushing her out of the way. Azula lost herself in a barrage of Bended fire, as she cast ball after ball at Toph, interested to see how many she could dodge, and how much they would hurt once they hit. The last one made a decent contact, and grounded Toph, with smoke rising from her clothes.

By the time she got up, Azula had already retaken her sword, and held both Lao and Poppy captive. Poppy was held with Azula's fingers, which were more like claws, implanted deep into the skin of her stomach, paralyzing any movement. Lao was held by the sword, Azula positioning it up against his neck.  
"No! Don't do it! Don't you need them? **I** need them!" Toph screamed, but still unable to rise back onto her feet because of her burn.  
"Need them? Who cares? This is so much fun, a girl doesn't get to do this sort of thing every day."  
"Azula!"  
"Hey, Toph, do me a favor? I want you to tell me what you see when I do this..." Azula pierced her sword into Lao's flesh at a 90º angle from his neck, and then exploded him with a marvelous blue flame. About the same time, lightning was shot from Azula's fingers into Poppy's body, electrifying her into a burnt crisp.

Toph's world went silent and grew dark; too dark, even for a blind person. She was still curled into a ball on the ground, but her body refused her the strength to stand back up, or even to utter one sound. She was struck mute, she didn't even know _what_ to think, much less say. The vibrations and images of Azula killing her parents proved to be too much, especially after she thought that Sokka was dead. Devastated, she just laid there in silence, while Ursa witnessed her from the shadows.

Ursa broke away from Iroh and Zuko before the chaos had begun. Even though the townspeople knew nothing of Ozai's and Azula's return, she knew herself that something was out of the ordinary. She recognized some of the faces of the soldiers; as they were part of Ozai's service while she was still in the palace. Her daughter was here somewhere, and what the Bei Fongs were saying didn't make any sense, and didn't ring true in her ears. Someone was forcing them to act this way, and if she knew her ex-husband, he was pulling their strings.

She had noticed the look of fear in Lao's eyes before any of this happened, as he periodically shifted his gaze from someone behind him and back to the people. Ursa wasn't stupid, even though she had become more timid over the painful years. When the crowd dispersed and violence took action, Ursa found a hidden spot behind some trees, which resided close to the mayor's office. Before she could do anything else, this whole sequence of events happened right in front of her, and now she was watching as Azula killed off Toph's parents, and then hearing her scream soon after, making the stone wall she had formed crumble.

After Azula had left Sokka alone, she came back about 30 minutes later to see him again; just moments before she had to meet up with her father to oversee Lao's declaration, and right after she had visited Toph. Sokka's despair had put him into a very deep sleep, shocked that Azula had the gall to steal a kiss, and Azula cracked her fingers at his sight. Without speaking a word, she blindfolded him and tied his feet and hands together. Over in the corner, she decided to leave him his sword, presenting it with an attached letter.

_Haha! Thanks for that kiss, boy. It really extinguished that little flame of yours after I told her what happened._

She left the room and positioned herself back up against the wall. "Well, almost what happened. I kinda lied just a tad. I wanted to know how she'd react. Not my fault if she thinks you're dead. Enjoy my present, Sokka. I'm sure you'll find some use out of it, but I really don't care what you do with it. So, if you can, I think it'd be nice if you tried to stop me. Who knows? Might merrit yourself another kiss."

* * *

When Sokka next awoke, he could hear the voices of Aang and Katara untying his ropes, and removing the cloth around his eyes.  
"Sokka!" Katara cried, happy to see her brother alive. She pulled back and witnessed his wounds. "Sokka! You're hurt!"  
"Yeah, thanks, Sis. I didn't know that."  
"Oh, shut up. Nice to see you haven't lost your ''good ol' Sokka charm.''"

Katara began healing his wounds with her water, and Sokka was dumbfounded. "What are you guys doing here?"  
"We," Katara began to explain, but Aang cut her off. "No time, Sokka. Katara, how fast can you heal him? Something bad is happening outside."  
"Just give me a moment, okay? It seems like you were already bandaged up, Sokka. Who did it?"  
"A demon. Just hurry it up, Sis! I need to save Toph!"

Aang's ears echoed the word, and he grew angry. "I'll have no more demons messing with my loved ones, where did she go?" he said, automatically assuming it was Azula.  
"Katara? Demons? What?"  
"Sokka, don't worry about it. Just a few more minutes and we can get you out of here. I see that you've actually put a fairly decent splint around your leg, I'd heal it now, but we don't have the time."  
"Yeah, all I need is my sword so I can lop off that vile woman's head." Sokka smacked himself on the temple, remembering that his sword had been stolen. For the second time, maybe the third, he couldn't keep track anymore. Katara gave him a cold stare, signaling that she didn't want him causing any more harm to his body.

"Hey, where's my sword?"  
Aang pointed to the corner of the room. "Sokka, it's right there. They let you keep it?"  
"No! Azula had it! That wasn't there before! What's... what's going on?"  
The moment Katara finished her brief healing, Sokka made his way to his sword, and the first thing he touched was Azula's note. He crumpled it in his hands and almost ripped it to shreds, but thought better of it and decided to read.

"Hey, Sokka. How you doing? Yep, you guessed it. It's Azula.

I had a really nice time with you earlier, so I wanted to

repay you by giving you back your sword. I don't care what

you do with it, you can even attack me if you want. Whatever

you do, it doesn't really matter much to me at all. Take care, okay?

PS: For a dead man, Sokka, you've got quite the wicked kiss."

Enraged, he furiously tore at the paper, leaving hundreds of shreds behind. Katara walked up to him and gave him a quick hug. "Ready, Sokka? Let's go get her."

Katara finished a few more minutes of healing; her skill in the area had vastly improved and she could manage deep wounds in a short amount of time. "Katara, that's enough. I'm fine. Worry about it later, I've been here too long."  
"Yeah, good idea, Sokka," Aang agreed, "There's work to be done."

Sokka picked up his sword and wore the strap over his shoulder, snapping the buckle with a loud click. His leg was still hurting, but Katara's healing made him feel much better. That leg of his would have to be looked at later, after they were done with everything here. He was the first one out, and Katara and Aang followed. Katara had never seen her brother so determined, he was acting like this matter was more important than life itself. To him, maybe it did; he knew that Toph would kill him if he didn't help her, and he really didn't want to suffer any more of her punches. Also, on a more serious note, something had to be wrong if she wasn't here already; whatever was going on was strong enough to keep Toph at bay. Sokka ran down the underground passageways, limping every few steps, and stopped to put his hand on the wall, leaning down to catch his breath.

"Sokka, you okay?" Aang asked him, wondering why he stopped.  
"Need me to heal your leg, Sokka?"  
"No. No healing, I don't want to waste any more time. I'm fine." He wiped off his sweat, and continued down his way with only one thing on his mind: saving Toph. After a long ten minutes down the stretching halls, a weak gasp could be heard a few feet away, followed by a very quick shriek.  
"Sokka, there are other people here?" Aang asked him.  
"I don't know. Suki, Ty Lee and all the others, maybe? I don't know what happened to them..." he answered, feeling remorse that he didn't have the power to save them.

"S-S-Sen..." the voice uttered, and at that, Sokka knew who was around the corner. He ran inside the unlocked door that Ty Lee previously opened, and nearly lost his breath at what he saw.

Ty Lee laid rather sloppily in blood, with a dead best friend positioned across her lap. Ty Lee's eyes were pointing to the ceiling, unaware of her new company, and made some noises as she began to open her mouth. Sokka raised an eyebrow at first, but after he saw the way her throat was moving and the held back position of her head, he knew that she was trying to bite off her tongue; an attempt at suicide. That was so unlike Ty Lee, yes, but this traumatic event had driven her over the edge, and she just wanted it to end. With Sen gone, everyone else most likely was too, and she couldn't continue to be happy if everyone around her was dead. Once she started to choke, Sokka snapped out of his shock and ran towards her, calling out her name.

"Ty Lee! Stop what you are doing! Now!"

She heard him, but also at the same time ignored him. She already assumed the rest were dead, using the type of depressive logic that came with losing a loved one. She tried again, but Sokka ran to embrace her, sticking his fingers in her mouth so that she bit down on those, instead of her own tongue. Her eyes blinked as Sokka had her head on his shoulders. "Snap out of it, Ty Lee! You're not going to do anybody any good dead, got it? Think of the others who would miss you, as well. You still have friends waiting for you," he said, crying along with her.

"Sokka!" she responded, giving him a very quick kiss on the cheek to say thanks.  
"Come on, you need to get up, don't want that blood infecting your skin." He took her hand and tried to pull her up, but she pushed him away, clutching tight to Sen's dead body. "No! I can't leave her, I can't! How can you even stand there and not feel what I'm feeling? She was your friend, too!" When the water cleared in her eyes for a few seconds, she also saw that Sokka had been crying, but also somehow keeping himself together. "Sokka..."  
"Ty Lee, I'm going to force you up, if I have to. You're going to be killed if you stay here, I'm not going to let that happen, got it?"

"Heh. Always the smart idiot, eh, Sokka?" Ty Lee said, smiling for the first time since she had been captured. He took her hand again, and she allowed him to lift her up, placing her away from Sen's blood pool. Katara immediately began to heal Ty Lee, and the sensation felt so soothing, Ty Lee actually allowed her to continue. To her surprise, it didn't take too long for her injuries to be healed. Katara turned to Sokka and scowled.  
"What? What did I do?"

"Sokka, you can't do anything if I don't finish healing you, got it? I'm the best Waterbender in the world, even Aang here can't compare to me," she said joking, giving a wink to her husband. Sokka was hesitant, but Katara was right; it had to be done. She spent some time healing the both of them and after she was finished, all wounds were gone. "Wow!" Sokka exclaimed, standing up fast, but then falling back down, feeling his leg buckle. "Hey! Sis! What's the big idea?"

Katara rolled her eyes and sighed. "Sokka, did you really think that the human body can just accept a major healing without putting any strain on it? You may be healed, but don't do anything stupid. Just think of it as a recovery process." She turned to Ty Lee and pointed her finger. "Same goes for you, too, Ty Lee. Don't go defying gravity just yet, okay?" Ty Lee smiled as to say, "Sure," and the four of them began to head out the door. Katara and Aang were already well ahead of them, when Ty Lee tugged on Sokka's arm, holding him back.

"Sokka, what are we going to do with Sen? I can't just leave her like that..."  
"This may sound harsh, but the living are more important now, okay? If we can, we'll give her a proper burial. I'll be there, too."  
"Thanks, but I just wish that I could have given her so much more. I really loved her. Really, really loved her."  
"I bet. Let's take care of the rest, though. We both have a grudge against her, now."  
"Hey, do you think Suki's still alive, Sokka?"

"Suki? If I know her, and believe me, I do, she'll be just fine. That girl won't give up without a fight, even if she's left standing all alone. That's what makes her strong, the only way she's going to die is through old age. Even then, I doubt she'd let it happen. She's just like Toph in that way, I think that's half the reason they clash, to begin with."  
"I see..."

"Hey! Even _I_ can feel your sad 'aura' or whatever you call it, Ty Lee! All that magical stuff or what not. Brighten up already, okay?"  
Ty Lee laughed and gave a heartfelt smile. "It's not magic, Sokka. It's the resonance of life."  
"Eh? Like I understand that. Magic sounds close enough, all I've got is a sword and that's good enough for me. Let's catch up to those two lovebirds, okay? They've already flown some distance."  
"Yeah, yeah. You just wanted to stop and talk to me, since you missed me so much," she said with a wink, gaining back her flirty and happy personality.  
Surprisingly, Sokka blushed; he hated how girls could always do that to him. "Yeah, let's just get out of here, okay? If I talk to you any longer, Toph's bound to wring my neck."

* * *

Toph was ready to give up; to just throw it all away. Everything had _already_ been thrown away, she had absolutely nothing left. The only three people that she truly cared about in the world were now dead, and the pain of sorrow was worse than death. Iroh had ran after Suki into the forest, seeing how he'd be able to control the burning fires that spread throughout Gaoling's outer forest. Zuko was exchanging blows with his sister, while Ursa watched in silent horror, unable to move from her location. "Just kill me, please," Toph said in a soft voice, "I don't care who. Zuko, Azula, doesn't matter. End result is the same. I'll kill myself, if I have to. Just Bend myself into my own little grave." _Maybe then I'll be able to see them again. And if I do, I'm gonna punch the crap out of Sokka! Breaking his promise to me..._

"Where's Mother, Zuko?" Azula asked, Bending another shot of fire.  
"I'm not telling you anything, Azula!" he answered, countering her attack with his own.  
"You ever wonder why she only said goodbye to you, and not to me?"  
"She didn't have time! Ozai, who I had once called Father, was planning to kill me! She just couldn't waltz on over to your room and stay!"  
"It always about you, Zuko. Why do you think I tried so hard to be acknowledged by Dad?"

Ursa listened in to their conversation, trying to find the right moment to stand inbetween the two, but her legs refused to move, keeping her where she stood.  
"He never paid attention to me, Azula! How do you think _I_ felt? You and him both!"  
"You don't know anything, Zuko!" she shouted, as the two clashed swords.  
"I know enough to know that you're crazy, Azula!"  
"Yeah, you didn't help getting me there at all, did you, dear brother?"

The dream Zuko had was reenvisioned, bringing him back into that cell. The flashback was cancelled with a wave of burning flame, and he jumped to get out of the way. "I did nothing wrong, Azula. You left us with no choice, you have to know that."  
"I know that you don't love me, Zuzu. You're trying to kill me, aren't you?"  
"No! You attacked me first! Stop this and we can talk!" he said, ironically Bending more fire.  
"Talk? I don't think we have much to talk about, Zuzu. Try dodging this one." Lightning formed in her hand, and Zuko's eyes widened; he wouldn't have enough time to counteract it with the technique his uncle taught him.

Toph could more or less follow their shadowed forms as she watched the battle, somehow being untouched, yet still wanting to die. Why wouldn't they attack her? She wasn't worth killing? What was going on? She didn't want to live any longer, she didn't care about anything any longer. So what if she never gave up in the past? What did it mean, now that everyone she loved had gone away? "Please, someone. Just kill me. Just..."

Ursa gave a shout, which surprised everyone, including Toph, right before Azula was ready to launch her attack. "Azula!" She revealed her location after she sounded out, and Zuko blinked in shock. "Mother! No! Stay back!" The lightning dissolved in Azula's hand, and she moved her eyes to where Zuko was looking. "Mother? Ah, you've finally come back to say hi, did you? How many years has it been?"

"Azula! I never meant to hurt you!"  
"Oh, please. Everybody says that. You hear it all the time. That line is so clichéd, it's annoying." Azula took one step forward, but Ozai stepped outside onto the stage.

"Father?" Azula asked in horror, knowing that she shouldn't have killed his two puppets, only being lost in the moment. "Azula, you've really made a mess of things, haven't you? No matter, I never expected you to succeed, anyways. I have more resources than this, you see. You'll be punished for setting me back, but I guess you're more like your mother than I thought. Weak." Azula was struck speechless, and as her mouth quivered, Ozai turned to his once traitorous wife. "Oh, hello, Ursa. It's so nice to see you after so very long."

"That's a lie, and you know it," she fired back.  
"What? I can't be civilized when speaking to an old friend?" he condescended.  
"You and I both know what you really want, Ozai."

"Oh, do you? You think that you know? What will you do if you actually find out? Do you plan on killing me, just like you did to Azulon? I was impressed that such a weakling was able to pull off such an amazing feat. Why have you even come back?"  
"To save my daughter from you, like I saved my Zuko."

"_Your_ Zuko? Ah, yes. He is definitely his mother's son. I forgot that he was standing right behind me. Failures don't usually spark my interest or attention, you understand."  
"I'm no failure, your words have lost their sting," Zuko said, breaking into a stance.  
"Makes no difference. A failure will always be a failure, he can never rise."  
"If _I_ am the failure, then what are you? You've lost your Bending, and the war. I even took over your crown. Who do you claim to be?"

Ozai clenched his fist, remembering the bitter thought. "You never took my crown, boy. The Phoenix King soars higher than any trivial Firelord. So what if I have lost my Bending? If that is the only thing that makes a man great, then he is a worthless fool. I have spent most of my entire life forming connections all over this planet, and gaining tremendous strength through means you are not privileged to know. If all you have is Bending, then you have nothing. I don't need it to still reign supreme."  
"I do have more, _Ozai._ More than you think. And I'll defend it all with my life."  
"You'll never have anything, Zuko. You're just as worthless as _she_ is. Just like your mother," Ozai said, pointing to Azula; who was still in silence on the ground. _"Worthless?" _Azula said in her mind, but couldn't speak with her mouth, _"How can you say that? You love me! You said you loved me! I'm not like her! She hates me! Mother hates me! I'm nothing like her!"_

"Ozai, you'll never change," Ursa spoke with a sharp tongue, "I should have left you a long time ago."  
"Ha! Should have? You were trapped since day one, _darling._ You were chained the moment you said, 'I do.' Your purpose has been done for a while. You're nothing more than a worthless, used up body."  
"She is not!" Zuko yelled, sending a stream of flame past Ozai's right side. He turned around and moved his fingers in the air. "You want to kill me, Zuko? Finish what was started so long ago? Still wearing that scar proud, I see."

Zuko felt over his scar before talking back to his father. "I can end your life now, it wouldn't be that hard."  
"Ah! So you say. There's gentleness in your eyes, now. You don't have the will to do it; you're still a weak little boy who's afraid of his superior father." Ozai walked up to Toph, who still laid on her side, and she did nothing to prevent it. He kicked her stomach, knocking the rest of her emotions and pain out into the open. "You're still alive? I thought that you'd be killed by now. I guess that, as well, was too much for my lovely daughter to handle. I should fix her mistake, with your parents dead, you're definitely not needed any longer."

"Please do," Toph wept, still finding no reason to continue to live. That went against her own personal decision to never give up and always stand strong, but there was no longer any reason for her to stand if she had no one to hold onto. "Giving up? You want to die? That's so weak."

"I don't care. Just kill me already."  
"Hmm, I guess you deserve a death, you were able to get us this far, at least. It'll be much easier killing you if I just choked the life out of you." He lifted her up by squeezing her throat, and the only oppostion was her body's natural response to tense and spasm.

"Father! No!" Zuko cried out, trying to stop him. As he ran towards him, his legs went numb after witnessing what happened next. Azula already had her sword sticking out of Ozai's chest, attacking him from behind. His hands shook, reaching over to the blade, as his blood dripped off its tip. His voice cracked and stopped, each time he tried to speak a word, choking on the very air he needed to say them. "Now you've served your purpose, Daddy. You should have seen this coming, honestly. Only the strong survive, remember?" Azula twisted the metal that was stuck inside her father's ribs, and slashed across diagonally through his torso, leaving him in two bloody piles. Toph had been dropped once the sword struck Ozai, and Zuko shielded her from any more attack.

In rage, Azula Bended a mixture of blue fire and several small strands of lightning on her fresh kill, incinerating the dead body. She only left two scarred burn marks, where the microscopic portion of his DNA still resided. Bewildered, Zuko looked at his sister and wondered what to say. "Azula? Are you...?"

"Don't be stupid, Zuzu. All I did was kill him, I was going to do it, anyways. He was getting in the way, I didn't like him telling me to kill only the ones he told me to. I don't want any restrictions, brother. I've had enough of those for the past six years. Now, who should I kill next?" she said, eyeing Toph, who was actually beginning to rethink her decision. "Ah, Toph. I guess it'd be fitting for me to kill you as well, yeah? After what I put your Sokka through, trust me, this won't be anything. You wanted to die anyways, no?"

"No..." Toph said, actually getting her thoughts together.  
"No? What's that? Didn't you want to die?" Azula grabbed her and brought her face close to hers, and rubbed against her chest. "I can really make it good for you, Toph. Come on, it's not every day you get to die." She pressed closer, touching Toph's nose with her finger. "What do you say, hm? It's a once in a lifetime opportunity."

_Sokka's dead, Toph. Mom and Dad are dead, too. Do you really want to continue living? _her thoughts asked herself.

"Well, Toph? It'd be really quick and simple. I might even give you a goodbye kiss, just like Sokka. You may even taste what's left of him inside of it," Azula gave a flirty look and moved in closer. "Azula," Toph said, about to give her answer, "Go to hell." Toph pushed her away, and broke into a stance that she had created after the war, perfecting it every day since the team went their separate ways. "I never give up, Azula. Even if I'm the only one left standing, I'll always stand my ground."

"Ooh, that's a stance I've never seen before. That's interesting, is it any fun?"  
"You could say that. I developed it for only one reason; to kill. I'm not playing around, this time."

"Take me back," Suki told Iroh, as he finished Bending away the fires.  
"It's nice to see you again, Suki. How are you feeling?"  
Suki lifted her bruised body off the ground, and sat on her knees. "Lousy. How do you think? That evil demon wasn't all that gentle."  
"I'm no doctor, Suki, but from the looks of it, I doubt that you're in much shape to fight."  
"I owe her another one, Iroh. Don't think that I'm just going to let her get away with this."

Without saying another word, knowing that Suki would not back down from her choice, Iroh removed his armor, only leaving behind the chainmail that was underneath. He also unsheathed his sword and laid it by Suki's side.

"Iroh?"  
"You remind me of Toph, Suki. The two of you never give up; maybe that's why she's always fighting with you."  
"Ha, and other personal reasons, I'm sure."  
"Take my equipment, you're just as good as naked in your current prisoner clothing."

Suki blushed and gave Iroh a stern look. "Hey!"  
"Yes, sorry about that. In any event, if you want to help them, you'd better put that stuff on. You're badly hurt, though. I strongly advise against it."  
"I'm not letting her have the satisfaction of defeating me, as long as I can still swing a weapon, I'll remain fighting. Plus, I can't forgive her for killing my Warriors and Sokka."  
"Your mind is made up then. And there is no way that I can just leave you out here all defenseless. Fine, climb onto my back, this old man's still has some strength left in his legs."  
Suki donned Iroh's armor and sword and when she was ready, she did as Iroh said. "Take the shortcut, Iroh. I want her dead."

Ursa stood still speechless, having just witnessed Azula kill Ozai so nonchalantly. Zuko still shielded Toph after she broke away, but she urged him to stand back as she went into her new deadly stance. The look on Azula's face was sadistic, pondering what would happen and how Toph would execute it. Toph moved the earth into her unsplinted hand and grafted it onto her skin for a temporary time. The Bended earth sharpened and became as a spike, protruding out of her fist. Within an instant, she ran rapidly towards Azula, aiming for the middle of her stomach. Azula turned around, causing Toph to miss her attack, but the edge on her fist still caught some skin, having Azula's side bleed; carrying along with it a pain that anyone else would have hated. Even though her eyes were twitching and face scrunched in an obvious sign of pain, Azula only twirled about playfully, spraying the flow of blood into the air.

"You need to wear some glasses, Toph. You missed."  
"Azula! That's enough!" Zuko shouted as he grabbed her from behind.  
"Don't try to stop me, brother. I'm having so much fun. Let your wonderful sister play a little bit longer, okay?"  
"Azula! You've lost your mind! Please! Mother came back because she loves you! There is no reason for you to be acting like this! Stop!" He felt some rising heat come out of Azula's skin, and he pulled away; freeing her from his grasp. He defended her next attack by Bending a quick shield of fire, and elbowed her face.

She spat out some blood from his attack, and laughed. "Well! That's the first time you have ever made me bleed, Zuzu. Well done! And as for this ugly thing..." She said, eyeing the freshly cut skin. She grappled her side, displaying a face of painful content, and turned her fingers red, heating the surface of her skin. With a horrible, yet pleasurable scream, she burned the wound; closing it up and ceasing the bleeding. She breathed heavily after, eyes shaking back and forth, while sweat ran down her cheeks. Her hands, arms, and legs, trembled from the operation, but Azula showed no sign of any grievance; only ectasy.

"Ooh, that's hot," she said, twirling her tongue. "Wanna try that again, Toph? I may actually let you hit me, this time."

Zuko could have ended this, he wanted to end all of this. All it would take would be a Bended flame, erasing her existence, or just something blunt enough to knock her out. He had hoped that his last attack with his elbow would have dropped her unconscious, but it obviously had little effect. Seemed to be quite the opposite, really, leaving him with few choices. He didn't want to kill his sister, especially since his mother was standing right there, but Azula couldn't be stopped, and now the rest of the men in Ozai's service were coming out to asist. Where was Aang, anyways? Or his uncle? He couldn't defend against Azula and all these men by himself. Toph was seeing red, well, sort of. Her anger and emotions were flying off the handle, and Azula's taunting definitely did not make the situation any easier. He defended against Azula, blow by blow, Bending fire back at her, while also looking over his shoulder for some help.

"Looking for somebody, Zuzu? _Mommy's_ over there, if you want to see her."

Toph wanted to attack Azula, but she was disrupted by all the warriors and Benders around her, and it was now getting hard to fight back with only one good arm, and with her injuries growing worse. Something had to happen, and somebody had to help her, but there wasn't anybody else... Everyone was dead, she thought. She still verged between living and dying herself, and as she concentrated her attacks on the numbers, she was beginning to lose it. Not much longer, and that broken arm of hers would give; leaving her practically defenseless, despite the splint that Sokka helped her make.

_Oh, yeah. Right. Sokka..._

Ursa ran towards her daughter, hoping to somehow stop the violence, but was inhibited by a large firewall, coming from the right of where they stood. Iroh landed, with Suki still on his back, and carried her down. With both Zuko and Azula surprised, Ursa found her chance and seized Azula from behind, giving her a constraining hug. Azula may be evil, but she was still her child; no matter what course of life she decided to take. Ursa hoped with all her soul that there was still a small possibility that Azula could come back, that she could live in peace.

"Uncle! About time you get here, what took you so long?"  
"Zuko, where's your manners? I can't just leave a lovely woman out in the middle of a forest during a stroll. Besides, we have more pressing matters to attend to."  
"You guys done talkin'? Want to help me out or something?" Toph asked rather crassly, demanding some help.  
"Uncle."  
"Yeah, Zuko." Iroh ran to help Toph against the remaining Earth and Firebenders, as there were still a large number attacking. Zuko watched as Suki and Azula stared each other down, without Azula trying to break away from her mother's hold. Was she coming back?

"I don't know who you are," Suki started to say, "But you'd better let go of her, unless if you want to die as well. That woman deserves no mercy, no love, no anything. She seems to enjoy pain, so let me at least give her that one final wish."  
"No!" Ursa shouted, as Azula now began to pull herself out, "I won't let you kill my daughter!"  
"D-Daughter...?" Azula mouthed, becoming confused, and unable to move.  
"Your daughter? So what if she is? She's killed other daughters of other mothers, and many, many more. What thinks you can stop me thrusting this sword through her ice-cold heart?" Suki asked, twirling the blade once and then pointing it directly at Azula.

"Stand down, Suki! I'm the one who called you here in the first place!" Zuko demanded.  
"You back off, Zuko. She stole the very lives that I cared about," Suki said, streaming a silver tear through her tarnished make-up, "Stand aside, _woman,_ or else, I'll kill you too," she threatened to Ursa. Suki and Azula were locked in a stare-down, paralyzing Zuko and Ursa, as well. Suki's fingers clenched tight onto the hilt of her blade as she made her decision.

"No! Suki! Stop!" Ty Lee screamed as her and the others ran outside, watching Suki rush towards Azula with her sword heading straight for the heart. It was too late, Suki, with eyes closed, charged blindly forward and as her target's blood splashed onto her face, she opened her eyes to see something that she hadn't expected; with that person's blood dripping down her eyelashes.

Ursa had stepped in front of the confused and immobile Azula, right before Suki's sword ran through her shoulder. The blood had also spattered onto Azula, making the deranged woman blink; every thought of her life rushing inside her head. "Mom? Why...what just..." Azula said, going over and over the questions in her mind. Did her mother just protect her? _**Her? **_After what she did? After what _both_ of them did? It didn't make any sense. Mother hated her. She had to have hated her; it was always about Zuko. Now she just... She just...

"Suki! What have you done?" cried Sokka, surprised that his good friend could actually lose herself like that. Suki turned around and dropped her sword, to see that in fact, Sokka, the _real_ Sokka, was standing right before her very eyes. Zuko only stood in mouth-gaping horror as his eyes were only fixated on the blade that was in his mother's left shoulder; he hadn't even heard the commotion of the other voices. He couldn't do a thing, couldn't move, just couldn't anything.

Toph hadn't paid attention to Sokka's voice as her and Iroh continued to fight. Still angry and tunnel-visioned, thinking that Azula had taken away everything from her, she held no remorse over the enemies she purposefully killed. Iroh, on the other hand, did his best to save the lives of those he was fighting, but he was unable to avoid some kills. Sickened by all the dead bodies and bloodshed, transposing that image with the scene of all the dead Kataras, Aang let out a scream and Bended the air, blowing all of the soldiers out of the way and having them fall to a safe distance away from the future carnage that could happen. After he had settled, Sokka locked his eyes onto Toph. "Toph!"

Her heart skipped a beat, no, dropped; could had even stopped. She didn't just hear Sokka's voice, did she? No. He was dead. She was losing it, now she was hearing his voice inside her mind. But it couldn't have been in there! She heard it so audibly and vividly out in the open, but it couldn't have been. No, it just couldn't.

Before her thoughts degressed any farther, her lips were met with his, yes, with Sokka's. Sokka! It _was_ Sokka! He was alive! Alive! Only _he_ could kiss like this, she had never been kissed by another before, but she knew. She just knew. She enjoyed the feel of his kiss, but it still felt so surreal, and she was still taken by shock and surprise. Even though she could hear his heartbeat, and feel his vibrations, it was too good to be true. This wasn't his ghost, right? He was still dead... But, there was only one way to find out for sure. Her fist clamped up and she decked him hard as she could on his cheek, while they were still kissing, nearly knocking him over. _That punch! _her thoughts exclaimed, _That was real! Real! It really is him! My Sokka! But Sokka, you were..._

"Sokka! You idiot! You stupid, stupid, stupid idiot! You're supposed to be dead!" she vented, tears already swelling in her eyes. "How could you do that to me? To just let me think that you were killed? That you and Azula..." She couldn't finish that part of her sentence, that false scene was still implanted into her memory. "Didn't I tell you that I never wanted to lose you? That you had no right to take away my love? The love that _you_ gave me? How could you just do that? You...stupid...Meatheaded..." Her words trailed off as her tears choked what remained of them.

"Say something! You can't just come back from the dead and kiss me!"  
"What?" Sokka smiled, "You don't like seeing me alive?"  
"You!" Toph blushed, "Yeah..." she said, finally relieving tension, "I'm... ecstatic..."  
"Oh? Really? You sure don't sound like it. Maybe I should return to the grave." Toph's hair stood on end and her face scowled at Sokka's words. "You do that and I'll KILL you!"  
"Yeah, yeah, yeah. You never will."

Ursa coughed, having the sword still stuck into her shoulder, and fell over to her side. The moment she made contact with the dirt, Azula's head shook, and gave a sheepish grin to Sokka. "Oh, hey Sokka. Nice to see you, again. Looks like you've accepted my present," she said, pointing to his sword. "Did you like my little love note I gave you?"  
"Sokka?" Toph said, again concerned.  
"I tore it up in hundreds of pieces, Azula. Stop playing games."  
"Ah, I see. Well, whatever. At least you read it."

The event of having Ursa being struck down had left everyone in shock, until Katara could bring her focus back and ran towards her, hoping that she could still save her life. At the same moment, Zuko lunged at his sister, tackling her to the ground.

"Kill her, Zuko! Kill her!" Toph screamed, angry at the disgusting creature. Suki, still tormented with emotions, and still feeling like an invisible sword was clutched tightly in her palms, Ty Lee bent over and hugged her. "Suki..."

Azula's eyes shifted all around, a bit scared of actually seeing all these people that were against her. Her brother, of course, yeah. He hated her so much, and she knew it. Then there was Suki, and Ty Lee. Those two had plenty of grudges, and Azula smirked at the thoughts. Iroh, he sided with Zuko, so they were _both_ traitors. Aang and Katara, she had some major personal issues with those two, and then there was Sokka. She had some fun with him, really made it feel good once Toph believed her story. Azula loved and feared everything that she remembered, and began to twitch her fingers, until she heard her mother cough again.

Her mother? Oh, yes. Her. This woman, the one that was now bleeding on the floor as that Water Tribe girl tried to heal her, was the same woman who had also abandoned her long ago as a child. She didn't care that she was bleeding, now. In fact, she deserved it. Yes, Ursa deserved to die for all she had done. Still, why did this one called, 'mother,' even save her to begin with? At that, how come she wasn't able to move, forcing Ursa to stand in front of her as Suki's blade pierced the flesh? She was outnumbered, and everyone that could have helped her, had already died.

"Look's like everyone's back together," she said with another demonic smirk, "Let's have some fun, then. How about a nice farewell party, before it's all over?"

"Oh, you'll get one, alright!" Toph said, digging her fingernails into her palm. Ty Lee still held Suki back, until she finally conceded and the two remained still in each other's arms. Suki didn't know about Sen, Ty Lee had no idea how to tell her, but for now, Suki needed to survive. As more of a comfort to herself than to Suki, Ty Lee burried her head into her hair, weeping and revealing a very transparent, and vulnerable side of herself.

Zuko and Iroh stood side by side, as the two defended Katara and Ursa. Sokka remained with Toph, although she was becoming a little hard to control and settle down. Aang took in all his surroundings, and waited for the next move, making sure that he didn't make a grave mistake. Proving that holding Toph back was at least a futile effort, Sokka tossed her aside and withdrew his blade. "Sokka!" Toph scolded, but he did not pay attention. Azula's gaze was still locked onto the bleeding image of her mother, and Sokka wanted to take advantage of her weakness while his chances were good. Azula had been strange that way; almost seemingly invincible one minute, and then a helpless mouse the next. This time was the 'next,' and Sokka wanted to make sure that he could make the best of it.

Since he was only a few feet away from Azula, Sokka was able to let his sword fly before anyone could prevent it. The slash on her back gushed out blood, and sent her to her hands and knees. "Aha. I get it, Sokka. So you _did_ attack me with your sword, after all. Well, good for you." She stood up almost as if nothing had happened, and scratched her back like it had been merely an itch. "Okay, let's do this, then," Azula said, Bending lightning all over her body; electrifying her bloodthirst with an erotic sense of pleasure. "So? Anyone, I don't care. Who wants to die, first?"

"No one," Aang said, his eyes beginning to glow.  
"What was that, Avatar?" Azula asked, curious to know if she heard what she thought she did.  
"No one else! I won't let anyone die! Not even you!" The air around him turned blue, complimenting the colored glow of the tattoos on his body. "I don't want to see another person die," Aang said calmly straight to Azula's face, but with a deep pressuring voice that made her skin crawl.

"I'm trembling, Aang. Like, _really_ trembling. This is intense, I think I'm loving it."  
"Azula, even you deserve a second chance," Aang said, as he closed in on her; forcing her back.  
"A second chance? What's that? You can't save me if I'm already burning in hell, Aang. The fires won't let you."  
"Hell doesn't command me, Azula." Aang exploded a large ball of energy surrounding only him and Azula; having all the elements come together as one so that nobody could interfere.

His motion silenced everyone, but also released some anger that they all had. Aang and Azula were now sectioned off in his spherical domain, and Azula circled her tongue. "We're all alone, Aang. How sweet of you."  
"Azula," Aang said, completely shutting down Azula's mind games, "You have caused so much pain to so many, yet there are some who still want you to live."  
"I'm the liar, Aang. Don't try to toy with me."  
"No, Zuko and Ursa want to see you alive, and as for me, I will not kill you."  
"You won't, eh? They love me? Love doesn't exist."

"Yes. Yes it does," Aang said, picturing all the wonderful times he had spent with Katara and would continue to spend. "You'll see, Azula. Trust me." Aang stepped closer to her, and she tried to push him away with ferocious blue fire, and lightning; all of which had no effect. Now she was really scared, that had never happened before. She acted like a frightened child, with her tears pouring out of her eyes pleading for him to leave her alone.

"No." Aang clasped both sides of her face with his hands and the two of them shone with an orange brillance. The draining force behind Aang's strange and unknown 'attack' to Azula, placed her into submission, falling into unconsciousness. When the Sealing was over, Aang dispelled his protective shield around him and Azula.

Ursa awoke in the middle of Katara's healing, and found that her daughter now lay still on the ground, with the Avatar towering above her unmoving body. "Azula!" she cried out, stretching the arm that Katara was trying to heal. Toph, also thinking that she was dead, held a silent laugh within her throat. Zuko and Iroh looked at Aang in confusion, knowing that what they were seeing had to be false. All eyes were on those two. Suki's, Ty Lee's, Katara's, Sokka's, all of them. Aang sighed and lowered his hand, using body language to say that everything was fine.

"No, she is not dead. I've only taken away her Bending, like I did with Ozai. She killed her father; now she can learn what it felt like to him." The crowd around him wore mixed faces. Some with joy, and some with hatred. Others, still, holding a combination of both.

"Thank you, thank you..." Ursa said, slowly rising to her feet and taking a bow towards Aang, "She's finally saved." Zuko and Iroh followed her motion, the two of them also glad to see what had just transpired. The others held opposite emotions, some of which would never be changed, but they all could agree that it was finally over; that Azula would no longer be a threat.

* * *

Mai walked rather carelessly to the other end of the hall, as she heard the news that Zuko had returned from his mission. She was happy that he made it back alive, or, at least as 'happy' as she could get. It took him long enough, too. She wasn't used to waiting for someone night after night, and now that he was back, she could now waste that time somewhere else. "Zuko, I'm glad you're back. Well, sort of, I guess. She better be dead, though. If I ever see her again, If I ever see Azula..."

She opened the front doors to greet her fiancé, and found herself surprised to see more than one person standing in front of her. There was Iroh and Ursa, but she expected to see them return at some point in time, but the person who stood next to Zuko was an entirely different matter. This person, she was somebody that Mai never wanted to see again for the rest of her life.

"Azula!" she screamed, drawing every bladed knife she could fit into her fingers. "H-Hey, Mai..." Azula said, turning her face away in what seemed like shame.

"Ah, you remember me now, don't you? Remember this?" Mai shoved Zuko aside and held her arms in the shape of an 'X', with Azula's head in the middle, and knives all around her skin. "Say one word, Azula. Just say it. I'll sever that pretty head of yours the moment you make a sound."

"Mai," Zuko said, "Back down. She's lost her Bending."  
"So? That'll just make it all the more easier to cut her head off." Mai pressed the knives deeper into Azula's skin; small drops of blood coming out of some of the punctures.  
"Mai, please. Trust me, okay? The Avatar, he did... something to her. She's not a threat anymore."  
"Like I'll believe that load of-"

"Mai," Azula cut in, "I'm sorry." Azula shed a tear, a legitimate tear, not one of trickery. The knives dropped from Mai's fingers at her words, and the clammer of each felled weapon rang truth to Azula's words. "You... are you really..." Mai couldn't respond, she didn't even know how to. Azula _never_ told her she was sorry! Not even once! How could this monster, this thing, this frightened little girl standing in front of her, say those words? And then actually mean them?

"Zuko, what's going on?"  
"A long story, Mai. I finally have back my family. And also want to start a new one. With you, right now."  
"Lover, we've been over this, we're engaged."  
"Yeah. But I'm Firelord. Let's get married now, Mai. I've had enough of waiting. Plus, I want my sister and mother to be there, as well."  
"You know that I'll never forgive her, right?"  
"I know. But she's my family now, I can't ever lose her."

"Fine. Whatever. Just kiss me and say, 'I do,' already. I'm getting bored sleeping by myself."

* * *

"What!" Toph screeched in a wild tone as Sokka held the object in front of her, outside in Gaoling's streets.  
"Toph, will you marry me? Don't make me ask you again."

Suki and Ty Lee nudged each other and gave a giggle. "You better say yes, Toph. We're still single." Suki said that, knowing that it would egg Toph on and force her into a decision. Toph's face became red with anger and at the same time, colored in anticipation. Suki and Ty Lee had their arms around each other, like best friends would do, and they were happy that they could give their departed friend a proper burial. Sen deserved that, but she had also deserved so much more. Ty Lee would be alright, Suki would always be there to console her, and now, this was a time of celebration.

"Sokka, you're such an idiot. Of course I'll marry you. Put whatever it is you're holding on my finger and let's get it over with." She turned her neck over to Suki and Ty Lee and gave another scowl. "You touch him, you die. He's mine now, got it?"  
"Gosh, Toph. You're making it sound like he's such a big deal!" Ty Lee said, giving a joyful glee. Suki only smiled, happy that Sokka was able to find his true love.  
"Yeah, you're right, he really isn't much," Toph said sounding annoyed and excited at the same time, "But I love him all the same."

* * *

Exhausted from the hardships they had endured, Aang and Katara held each other close under the shelter of their blankets, with not much underneath. It was a silent, passionate moment, just staring into each other's eyes, knowing that their love transcended life itself. He moved his body over top of hers, resting his head on her pillow close to her lips. "Aang," she whispered softly, "I think that I'm pregnant." Enthralled by her news, he pressed his body up against hers with tears in his eyes.

"I love you."


End file.
